Reacting to the Gujarat High Court order on the degree of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Saturday said the court ruling in the case has further intensified the “mystery around the educational qualification of the PM”.
The Gujarat High Court had, on Friday, ruled that the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) need not furnish the degree and post-graduate certificates of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The verdict of the high court came after Justice Biren Vaishnav set aside the order of the Chief Information Commission (CIC) that directed the public information officer (PIO) of PMO and the PIOs of Gujarat University and Delhi University to provide details of PM Modi’s graduation and post-graduation degrees.
Addressing a press conference, Kejriwal said, “The order of the Gujarat High Court that stated that citizens of the country cannot ask for the educational qualifications and degrees of the prime minister has shocked everyone as we all reside in a democracy and it is the people’s right to ask questions and seek their answers from the government.”
The Delhi CM added that it is not a crime to be uneducated or less educated as within India because of their financial circumstances a lot of people did not find the access to good quality education.
Kejriwal said, “The Gujarat High Court order has further intensified the mystery around the educational qualification of PM Modi.”
“If the PM has indeed studied from Gujarat University and Delhi University, then these institutions should be so proud that the PM of India has studied in their institution, and they should reveal this information to the public. But instead of celebrating this fact, these universities are being made to hide the details about the degree,” Kejriwal said.
Explaining his rationale behind asking the government about the educational qualifications of the PM, Kejriwal said that it has been 75 years since Independence and the country has not developed at the speed that it ideally should have.
Stating that we all live in the 21st century, Kejriwal said that the youth of this century are very aspirational and they want to find a solution to the problems of the country such as high inflation and high unemployment.
“The youth wants the country to progress at a rapid pace and for this it is very important for the PM of the nation to be well educated,” he said.
“Should the PM of 21st Century India not be well educated? Does India need an educated PM? This is the question I ask to the citizens of the country. When a person hires a manager even to run a single company, they require the applicant to have certain qualifications like an MBA, etc. So, should the person who is mandated to ‘manage’ a nation like India not be educated?,” the AAP National Convenor asked.
Kejriwal said it is important for the PM to be well-educated as he needs to take various important decisions regarding different aspects of life on a daily basis.
The Delhi Chief Minister also said it is very important for the head of the state to be literate, otherwise the officers of the government can easily take you for a toss and get you to sign important documents without your understanding.
Giving the example of the demonetisation exercises that was done by the Central Government in November 2016, the CM alleged that the exercise took the country ten years behind.
Kejriwal said, “An educated PM would never have allowed for such an exercise to take place.”