HC notice to Guj govt, EC on PIL over minister's degree

The Gujarat High Court today issued notice to the state government, Election Commission and Minister of State in Gujarat government Shankar Chaudhari on a PIL alleging that he obtained a fake MBA degree.
A division bench of acting Chief Justice Jayant Patel and Justice N V Anjaria sought reply of the Gujarat government, EC, the minister, Patan district's Superintendent of Police and two educational institutes in question.
The institutes were Patan-based school Sheth K B Vakil Vividhlaxi Vidyalaya, where Chaudhari completed his class 12th in 2011, and National Institute of Management (NIM) of Vadodara from where he allegedly took the fake MBA degree.

The high court acted on the PIL filed by Patan-based Congress worker Farsu Goklani who alleged that Chaudhari, the MoS for Health and Family Welfare and with independent charge of Urban Housing, had obtained a fake MBA degree.
Placing before the court RTI documents of the Patan-based school, the petitioner said Chaudhari had completed his class 12th in 2011 from the same school.
Chaudhari had in his affidavit before the state EC in 2012 stated that he had completed MBA in the same year (2012) from Vadodara-based NIM.

The petitioner alleged that no institute in the world can offer an MBA degree in a year, that too after class 12th.

Goklani demanded that Chaudhari should be prosecuted for submitting false details regarding his degree in the poll affidavit.
He also demanded that the Election Commission should cancel his candidature and the Gujarat government should sack him from the ministerial post.
The petitioner said Chaudhari had obtained the alleged fake MBA degree with an intention to get a big post in the state Cabinet and if he would succeed in getting a post of Cabinet minister, then there is possibility that he may take wrong decision which will have adverse effect on Gujarat.
After hearing submissions of the petitioner through senior advocate Shalin Mehta, the high court observed that the Election Commission cannot become passive in such cases, and posted further hearing on October 29.

Chaudhari, MLA from Vav Assembly seat in Banaskantha district, was made a minister after Anandiben Patel took charge as the Chief Minister in May 2014.