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The Delhi High Court on Thursday reserved its judgment on Delhi University’s petition challenging the Central Information Commission’s directive to disclose records pertaining to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bachelor of Arts degree.
Justice Sachin Datta, presiding over the matter, stated, “Arguments heard. Judgment reserved.”
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing DU, argued that the CIC’s order warranted reversal. However, he clarified that DU had no reservations about presenting the records before the court. “The university has no objection to showing the record to the court. There is a degree from 1978, Bachelor of Arts,” Mehta affirmed.
The controversy originated from an RTI application filed by Neeraj, prompting the CIC, on December 21, 2016, to grant permission for inspecting the academic records of all students who had completed the BA program in 1978—the year in which Prime Minister Modi also graduated. In response, the Delhi High Court issued a stay on the CIC order on January 23, 2017.
On February 11, DU contended that the requested information was held in a fiduciary capacity and that “mere curiosity” in the absence of substantiated public interest did not justify the disclosure of personal academic records under the Right to Information (RTI) Act.
The university further criticized the indiscriminate use of the RTI mechanism, asserting that it risked being “reduced to a joke” by permitting broad queries seeking details on all students who had passed the BA examination in 1978, including the Prime Minister.
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