New Delhi, Nov 11: The Delhi High Court on Wednesday directed Delhi University (DU) to respond within three weeks to petitions seeking condonation of delay in filing appeals against an order concerning disclosure of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s bachelor’s degree.
A bench comprising Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela issued the direction while hearing pleas by RTI activist Neeraj, AAP leader Sanjay Singh, and advocate Mohd Irshad. The bench noted there was a delay in filing appeals against the single judge’s August 25 order that had quashed a Central Information Commission (CIC) directive to disclose PM Modi’s degree details.
The court allowed DU, represented by Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, three weeks to file its objections, while the appellants can respond within two weeks thereafter. The matter will next be heard on January 16, 2026.
The single judge had earlier ruled that Modi’s educational qualifications do not warrant public disclosure merely because he holds public office, observing that the Right to Information Act promotes transparency in governance, not “fodder for sensationalism.”
The August order had also set aside the CIC’s 2016 decision allowing inspection of DU’s BA records from 1978—the year Modi graduated. The same order had annulled a similar CIC directive asking CBSE to share Class 10 and 12 records of former Union Minister Smriti Irani. (Agencies)
