Degree row: 'Smriti Irani has no moral, legal right to continue as HRD minister'

Opposition parties today demanded the removal of Human Resource Development Minister Smriti Irani, saying she has no "moral, constitutional or legal" right to continue in her post after a Delhi court took cognisance of a complaint that she gave false information about her educational qualification.

"It is apparent that the country's education minister is lying about her own education. What will happen to the future of millions of children in the country. Irani has no moral, constitutional or legal right to continue in her post for even a day," said Congress's chief spokesperson, Randeep Surjewala.

He claimed that Irani had in 2004 submitted an election affidavit stating she had received a bachelor's degree in Arts in 1996 from Delhi University. But, in 2011, when she filed a Rajya Sabha nomination from Gujarat, she stated that she holds a B.Com degree of 1994 from DU, he added.

In 2014, in her nomination papers for the Amethi Lok Sabha seat, she had said she is a B.Com graduate of DU's School of Open Learning. "After a court has prima facie found a cognisable case against her, we demand that Irani must resign forthwith or be dismissed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi," he said.