Delhi HC Set Aside Petition Against AAP Legal Cell President Sanjeev Nasiar

Delhi High Court

The Delhi High Court on Monday dismissed a petition against advocate and AAP legal cell president Sanjeev Nasiar after confirming that his law degree is genuine, according to a verification report from the concerned university.

The petition was filed by Naresh Chandra Gupta, a former president of the Delhi Bar Association, who claimed that the law degrees of both Sanjeev Nasiar and Dilip Kumar Rana were fake. Justice Sachin Datta dismissed the petition but requested that the verification of Dilip Kumar Rana’s degree be expedited.

“In view of the communications issued by the concerned university, there is no basis for the assertion/presumption in the writ petition that the LLB degree of respondent no 3 (Sanjiv Nasiar) is ‘forged and fabricated,'” stated Justice Datta in the judgment passed on August 12.

The court noted that the university, Devi Ahilya Vishwavidyalaya in Indore, has clearly confirmed that Nasiar’s law degree, both provisional and final, is “genuine and regular.”

The bench also referenced a communication dated March 15, 2024, from the university to the Secretary of the Bar Council of Delhi. Additionally, in an April 25, 2023 order from a contempt case dating back to 2016, the High Court had directed that the complaint against respondent no. 4, Dilip Kumar Rana, be reviewed by a High-Powered Committee constituted by the Supreme Court.

The court order specifically instructed the Secretary of the Bar Council of India to present all related documents to the High-Powered Committee for proper directions to the Bar Council of Delhi and the university regarding the verification of Rana’s law degree.

The affidavit filed by the Bar Council of Delhi (BCD) on April 23, 2024, revealed that the necessary documents had already been forwarded to the Secretary of the Bar Council of India, who acts as the Nodal Officer for the High-Powered Committee.

“In the circumstances, the High-Powered Committee is requested to expeditiously conclude the verification of the degree/certificate of enrolment of respondent no. 4,” the judgment stated.

The petition was based on allegations that Sanjeev Nasiar, who holds the position of Vice-Chairman of the Bar Council of Delhi, is unqualified to remain in office because the documents he used to enroll as an advocate with the BCD were allegedly not genuine and had been forged. Similar allegations were made against Dilip Kumar Rana, claiming his enrollment documents were also forged. It was further alleged that the BCD, with ulterior motives, was not taking action against Nasiar and Rana.