Delhi man held with fake Manav Bharti University degree

Bhanu P Lohumi

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Tribune News Service

Shimla, September 23

The CID Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the Manav Bharti University (MBU) fake degree scam today arrested Kewal Sharma from Delhi for possessing a fictitious degree.

Sharma claimed to have obtained a B.Com degree from the MBU during 2010-13 but during investigation, his degree was found to be fake, said DIG, CID, Bimal Gupta. His degree figures among the 103 fake degrees on the basis of which an FIR was registered.

The SIT had identified differences between the original and fake degrees on technical grounds and Sharma’s degree was found to be fake. Moreover, Sharma also admitted that he had not studied after Class X.

DGP Sanjay Kundu handed over the case to the CID last week. An SIT comprising members of the CID, Enforcement Directorate, Income Tax Department and the SIT probing the case was constituted.

The University Grant Commission (UGC) letter dated August 30, 2019, had pointed out that Manav Bharti University, Solan, had allegedly sold about five lakh degrees. It had directed the authorities concerned to conduct a thorough inquiry into the allegations of the sale of fake degrees, following which three cases were registered at Dharampur police station in Solan district.

Earlier, the investigating agencies had found that the university had issued a large number of fake degrees in exchange for money. They had also recovered blank copies, answer-sheets, and certificates of courses not offered by the university and arrested a Registrar and the Chairman of the university.