Delhi High Court Weekly Round Up [August 18- August 23, 2025]

1. [PM Narendra Modi Degree Row] The Delhi High Court on Wednesday deferred pronouncement of its judgment in a plea filed by Delhi University (DU) challenging the Central Information Commission’s (CIC) order that had directed the varsity to allow inspection of records of all students who passed the BA exam in 1978, the year Prime Minister Narendra Modi is stated to have graduated. Justice Sachin Datta, who had reserved the order on February 27, was scheduled to deliver the verdict at 2:30 pm today. However, the pronouncement was deferred as the judge was sitting in the UAPA Tribunal and not holding regular court. Justice Sachin Datta, who had reserved the order on February 27, was scheduled to deliver the verdict at 2:30 pm today. However, the pronouncement was deferred as the judge was sitting in the UAPA Tribunal and not holding regular court.

Case Title: University of Delhi v. Neeraj & Anr.

Bench: Justice Sachin Datta

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2. [ANI vs OPENAI] The Delhi High Court on August 18, 2025, heard arguments in the ongoing copyright infringement suit filed by ANI Media Pvt. Ltd. against OpenAI, the maker of ChatGPT. The case, which could reshape the future of copyright law in the age of artificial intelligence, drew widespread attention from India’s news publishing industry. Appearing before Justice Amit Bansal, the Digital News Publishers Association (DNPA) warned that unchecked use of copyrighted news content by AI platforms like ChatGPT “reduced the incentive to create” and undermined both the viability and creativity of journalism. Advocate Rajshekhar Rao, representing DNPA, argued that ChatGPT freely used journalistic content without consent or compensation, threatening the survival of news organisations. “Today we are dealing with something that says it is ChatGPT but effectively reduces my incentive to create, because whatever I do is being taken away… ChatGPT is, in fact, on a lighter note, Chaat GPT,” Rao said.

Case Title: ANI Media Pvt. Ltd. v. OpenAI OpCo LLC

Bench: Justice Amit Bansal

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3. [Custody Parole Costs] The Delhi High Court on Monday, 18 August 2025, reserved its order on a plea filed by Jammu and Kashmir MP Abdul Rashid Sheikh, popularly known as Engineer Rashid, challenging a trial court’s direction imposing costs on him as a condition for granting custody parole to attend Parliament. A division bench of Justices Vivek Chaudhary and Anup Jairam Bhambhani reserved the order after hearing submissions from Rashid, the Delhi Police, and the National Investigation Agency (NIA). On August 12, the High Court had asked the Delhi Police to explain the basis of the travel costs imposed on Engineer Rashid as a condition for granting him custody parole. On Monday, counsel for the Delhi Police explained that the costs included the salaries of police officials deployed for escort duty. Appearing for Rashid, Senior Advocate N. Hariharan argued that while custody parole could be subject to reasonable conditions, the burden of paying the salaries of as many as 15 police personnel should not be placed on his client.

Case Title: Abdul Rashid Sheikh v National Investigative Agency

Bench: Justice Vivek Chaudhary and Justice Anup Jairam Bhambhani

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4. [Newslaundry Suit] The Delhi High Court on Monday, August 18, 2025, sought a response from Abhijit Iyer-Mitra on a fresh petition filed by Newslaundry’s Managing Editor, Manisha Pande, along with other women journalists, seeking the takedown of a series of allegedly defamatory tweets recently posted by him. A bench led by Justice Purushaindra Kumar Kaurav heard the matter and granted Iyer-Mitra six days to respond. The case is now listed for further hearing on August 28. Earlier, Pande had filed a defamation suit seeking relief against allegedly defamatory posts and content published by Mitra.

Case Title: Manisha Pande v Abhijit Iyer Mitra

Bench: Purushaindra Kumar Kaurav

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5. [BFI Elections] The Delhi High Court on Monday, August 18, 2025, allowed the Boxing Federation of India (BFI) to proceed with its elections scheduled for August 21. Justice Mini Pushkarna, presiding over the matter, clarified that the elections would remain subject to the outcome of writ petitions filed by four state associations: Delhi, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, and Himachal Pradesh, challenging the decisions of BFI’s Interim Committee and the amended Constitution dated May 18, 2025. It was further added that the court was not granting any stamp of approval to the new Constitution. The three state units, represented by advocate Chaitanya Mahajan, sought urgent judicial intervention to quash what they termed the arbitrary and illegal actions of the respondent authorities concerning the conduct of elections to the BFI.

Case Title: Himachal Pradesh Boxing Association & Anr. v. Union of India & Ors.

Bench: Justice Mini Pushkarna

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6. [Bank Fraud] The Delhi High Court on Tuesday, August 19, 2025, dismissed the bail plea of Arvind Dham, former Chairman of the Amtek Group, who has been in custody since July 2024 following his arrest by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in connection with a Rs. 2,700 crore bank fraud case. The judgment was passed by Justice Ravinder Dudeja, who had reserved it earlier this month after hearing extensive arguments from both sides. During the last hearing, Special Counsel Zoheb Hossain, appearing for the ED, opposed Dham’s bail plea, terming the Amtek case one of the largest financial frauds in India. He submitted that Dham and his associates were still engaging in financial manipulations and were attempting to sell assets and influence witnesses. Senior Advocate Vikas Pahwa, representing Dham, countered these submissions by invoking the constitutional right to a speedy trial under Article 21 of the Constitution. He argued that prolonged incarceration without any meaningful progress in trial proceedings amounted to a violation of Dham’s fundamental rights.

Case Title: Arvind Dham v ED

Bench: Justice Ravinder Dudeja

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7. [GD Goenka Autism Case] The Delhi High Court on Tuesday orally remarked that society as a whole bears the responsibility of ensuring that children with special needs are assimilated into the mainstream. The observation came while the court was hearing an appeal filed by GD Goenka School against a single-judge order directing the institution to readmit a child diagnosed with mild autism into an age-appropriate class. A division bench comprising Chief Justice D.K. Upadhyaya and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela is seized of the matter. The court had earlier, on August 5, constituted an expert panel to conduct a fresh evaluation of the child after the school questioned the single judge order. The report of the evaluation was presented before the court; however, the school opposed it, arguing that it had not been given an opportunity to interact with the student during the evaluation. In view of this, the division bench directed Dr. Shehzadi Malhotra, Associate Professor of Clinical Psychology at IHBAS, to file a note within two days detailing the process adopted for the assessment and evaluation of the child. The court further directed that upon receipt of this affidavit, the school may file its objections within two days thereafter.

Case Title: G.D. Goenka Public School v. Aadriti Pathak & Anr.

Bench: Chief Justice D.K. Upadhyaya and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela

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8. [ED vs Bhandari Fugitive Tag] The Delhi High Court on Thursday, 21 August, reserved its verdict on a plea filed by UK-based arms consultant Sanjay Bhandari challenging a trial court order that had declared him a “fugitive economic offender.” Justice Neena Bansal Krishna reserved the order after hearing submissions on behalf of the Enforcement Directorate (ED), represented by Additional Solicitor General S.V. Raju and Special Counsel Zoheb Hossain, as well as Senior Advocate Kapil Sibal, who appeared for Bhandari.

Case Title: Sanjay Bhandari vs Enforcement Directorate

Bench: Justice Neena Bansal Krishna

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9. [Ozempic Scam]The Delhi High Court has granted protection from coercive action to businessman Vicky Ramancha, accused of duping US-based Assure Global LLC of USD 18.8 million through the supply of counterfeit doses of the anti-diabetic drug Ozempic.Ramancha stands accused of running a sophisticated transnational fraud operation that allegedly caused financial losses exceeding USD 18.8 million to Assure Global LLC. It is alleged that he created fraudulent certificates of origin and trade documentation to build credibility, initially making partial deliveries to win trust before escalating to larger fraudulent transactions. The scheme involved inducing the complainant company to pay USD 18,834,382 for pharmaceutical consignments, then supplying counterfeit Ozempic drugs, which were subsequently seized by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

Case Title: Vicky Ramancha vs State of NCT of Delhi

Bench: Justice Neena Bansal Krishna

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10. [Cross FIR Over Pet Dogs] The Delhi High Court has recently put an end to cross FIRs lodged by two neighbours after a quarrel over their pet dogs escalated into a scuffle. Justice Arun Monga quashed the FIRs lodged by neighbours Ansh Jindal and Kirti Chauhan at Police Station K.N. Katju Marg. The cases arose from a routine dog walk that spiralled into a heated altercation and eventually an unsavoury scuffle, with each side accusing the other of assault, intimidation, and misbehaviour. The Court, however, directed both sets of petitioners to deposit Rs 10,000 each with the Unity for Stray Animal Foundation, a dog shelter in Khera Khurd, Delhi, “for the love of their pets.”

Case Title: Ansh Jindal & Ors. v. State of NCT of Delhi & Anr.

Bench: Justice Arun Monga

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