Prayagraj court orders probe into alleged fake degrees of UP Deputy CM

The court in Uttar Pradesh's Prayagraj directed police to undertake a preliminary inquiry into the alleged fake degrees of Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya

The additional chief judicial magistrate (ACJM) court in Uttar Pradesh's Prayagraj on Wednesday directed police to undertake a preliminary inquiry into the alleged fake degrees of Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya.

ACJM (Prayagraj) Namrata Singh directed the station house officer of Cantonment, Prayagraj to submit a report on certain points in a week and posted the matter for further hearing on August 25.

First, the authenticity of the degree like Uttar Madhyama second year issued by the Hindi Sahitya Sammelan, Prayagraj to the deputy CM. Secondly, regarding the allegation of use of fake certificates by Maurya in the affidavit of elections.

Besides this, the court has also ordered an inquiry regarding the use of fake certificates of high school by deputy CM to obtain a petrol pump.

The Deputy CM is alleged to have obtained a petrol pump from Indian Oil on the basis of a fake high school certificate.

The ACJM court has given this order on the basis of the decision of the Supreme Court in the Priyanka Srivastava versus State of UP case. On March 19, 2015, Supreme Court Judge Justice Dipak Mishra gave the verdict in this case.

Earlier, the court had reserved the decision after hearing to August 7 in the alleged fake degree case of Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya.

RTI activist and senior BJP leader Diwakar Tripathi has filed a plea and has made serious allegations against Deputy CM Keshav Prasad Maurya that he contested five separate elections by imposing fake degrees. Along with this, the petrol pump has also been obtained on the basis of fake degrees.

In his plea, the BJP leader has demanded the cancellation of the elections of Deputy CM Keshav Prasad Maurya and also to cancel the allotment of the petrol pump.

The application states that Deputy CM Keshav Prasad Maurya contested the 2007 elections from the City West assembly constituency. After this, he also contested the assembly elections from Sirathu in 2012 and has also contested the Lok Sabha elections from Phulpur in 2014.