Vyapam-type scam possible in Maharashtra: NCP

In a stinging attack on the ruling BJP-Shiv Sena combine, the NCP on Thursday said a scam like Vyapam in Madhya Pradesh was "a possibility" in Maharashtra where the education ministry was headed by Vinod Tawde whose qualifications were suspect.

"The education minister (Tawde)... is now in charge of the crucial engineering and medical departments. We fear that if he remains minister, there could be a Vyapam-type scam in Maharashtra," said Nationalist Congress Party state spokesperson Nawab Malik.

Reacting to the NCP's allegations about his academic qualifications, Tawde said if Malik could prove any wrongdoing by him, then he (Tawde) would quit politics, otherwise Malik should quit.

In his bid to embarrass the BJP further while party president Amit Shah is in Mumbai for two days, Malik told media persons that Tawde claimed to be a BE (Electronics), which he was not.

Malik said Tawde obtained his degree from a Pune institute which "advertises and sells" engineering degrees to those who fail Class 12. "This means Tawde is not even 12th pass," Malik said.

The former technical education minister alleged that Tawde was not even Class 10 pass.

"He is not HSC pass, his SSC is also doubtful, he claims to have an engineering degree from an institution which was ordered by the Bombay High Court in 2004 to be closed. Now the same person is the education minister of the state. How can this be?" Malik demanded.

Claiming that the episode of Tawde's controversial degree has tarnished the respected image of Maharashtra's education sector in India and abroad, the NCP leader demanded a probe by the anti-corruption department and threatened to take legal recourse.