File photo of Jitender Singh Tomar being sworn in as Delhi minister
New Delhi:
Delhi Law Minister Jitender Singh Tomar has offered an elaborate explanation to his chief minister Arvind Kejriwal on allegations that he faked his degree, amid demands for his sacking by the BJP and the Congress.
"The BJP is trying to malign me," Mr Tomar said in a letter to Mr Kejriwal, who has seen protests near his residence for two days.
"The whole fake degree drama is being propagated on the basis of false roll numbers given by RTI complainants and the BJP," he alleged.
He told reporters that his response has convinced the Chief Minister. "My leader knows I am right. Why are you after such a small thing?"
On Tuesday, a Bihar university told the Delhi High Court that it has no record of Mr Tomar's law degree. The university said Mr Tomar's provisional certificate was "fabricated and doesn't exist in the university's record." It also said that the serial number on Mr Tomar's purported certificate threw up a "different person's name from a different stream."
The university has alleged that its records have been tampered with. The court, acting on a petition that says Mr Tomar used a "false and bogus" degree to become an advocate, has asked the minister to respond by August 20.
Mr Tomar insists that his degree is "100 per cent genuine."
In his letter to Mr Kejriwal, he says that he has original mark sheets to prove his graduation. He also asserts that he has proof of his law degree from Vishwanath Singh Institute of Legal Studies in Bhagalpur - a different college from the one that responded to the court notice.
The 48-year-old first-time minister has faced questions over his educational qualifications since the day he was named part of the Aam Aadmi Party government in Delhi.
A court has in the past asked an Uttar Pradesh college to confirm Mr Tomar's graduation degree in science.
"The BJP is trying to malign me," Mr Tomar said in a letter to Mr Kejriwal, who has seen protests near his residence for two days.
"The whole fake degree drama is being propagated on the basis of false roll numbers given by RTI complainants and the BJP," he alleged.
He told reporters that his response has convinced the Chief Minister. "My leader knows I am right. Why are you after such a small thing?"
On Tuesday, a Bihar university told the Delhi High Court that it has no record of Mr Tomar's law degree. The university said Mr Tomar's provisional certificate was "fabricated and doesn't exist in the university's record." It also said that the serial number on Mr Tomar's purported certificate threw up a "different person's name from a different stream."
The university has alleged that its records have been tampered with. The court, acting on a petition that says Mr Tomar used a "false and bogus" degree to become an advocate, has asked the minister to respond by August 20.
Mr Tomar insists that his degree is "100 per cent genuine."
In his letter to Mr Kejriwal, he says that he has original mark sheets to prove his graduation. He also asserts that he has proof of his law degree from Vishwanath Singh Institute of Legal Studies in Bhagalpur - a different college from the one that responded to the court notice.
The 48-year-old first-time minister has faced questions over his educational qualifications since the day he was named part of the Aam Aadmi Party government in Delhi.
A court has in the past asked an Uttar Pradesh college to confirm Mr Tomar's graduation degree in science.
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