Reply on plea to set aside election: HC to Delhi law minister

The Delhi High Court on Monday sought a response from the city's Law Minister Jitendra Singh Tomar on a plea filed by BJP leader Nand Kishore Garg seeking setting aside of Tomar's election from the Tri Nagar assembly constituency.

Justice Manmohan asked Tomar to file his response to the plea by August 19.

Garg, who had contested the February 7 assembly election against Tomar, said he (Tomar) "wilfully suppressed his educational qualification" in the affidavit filed along with his nomination form.

Garg also alleged that Tomar had enrolled himself as an advocate on the basis of a "fake and bogus" graduation degree.

"Tomar's election had been materially affected by deliberate concealment, misrepresentation, wrong declaration and wilful suppression of the educational qualification in the affidavit filed along with the nomination form.

"Tomar, at the time of filing the nomination, and thereafter, has continued to misrepresent himself to be a law graduate and advocate and has thus been successful in exercising undue influence over the voters, which amounts to corrupt practice within the meaning of the Representation of the People Act," the plea said.

A different bench is also dealing with the issue of the validity of Tomar's LLB degree after a petition, filed in February, alleged that Tomar had taken admission in the LLB course at Bishwanath Singh Institute of Legal Study College in Bihar on the basis of a fake graduation degree.

The university had also told the court that Tomar's provisional certificate was "fabricated" and did not exist in their records.

The Bar Council of Delhi is also dealing with the issue.