Court accepts plea to examine Smriti Irani's 'fake' degrees

Trouble looms for union minister Smriti Irani.

A Delhi court has said that the complaint or plea against the Union HRD Minister for allegedly giving "false" information about her educational qualification in affidavits filed with the Election Commission, is 'maintainable'. The court will hear the case on August 28.


Metropolitan Magistrate Akash Jain had on June 1 reserved the order on the plea after hearing arguments on the aspect of limitation and whether cognisance can be taken or not.


The complaint was filed by freelance writer Ahmer Khan, who alleged that Irani in her three affidavits before the EC while filing nominations for her candidature for Lok Sabha as well as Rajya Sabha polls had purportedly given different details about her educational qualification.


Senior advocate K K Manan, appearing for Khan, had told the court that in her affidavit for April 2004 Lok Sabha polls Irani had said that she completed her BA in 1996 from Delhi University (school of correspondence) whereas in another affidavit of July 11, 2011 for contesting Rajya Sabha election from Gujarat she said her highest educational qualification was B.Com part I from the School of Correspondence, DU.