New Delhi: A New Delhi court on Thursday asked the Election Commission of India (ECI) to file a certificate to authenticate the election affidavits filed in court by Union Minister Smriti Irani on her educational qualifications. Metropolitan Magistrate Harvinder Singh asked the ECI to send an official along with a certificate after observing that the affidavits exhibited in court were a copy of the electronic record available on the commission’s website.
The court adjourned the matter to October 15.
The Election Commission had earlier submitted documents that were a copy of the file extracted from its official website. At that time, the commission told the court that Irani’s original 2004 election affidavit was misplaced; the complainant’s counsel told the media outside court.
The court was hearing a private complaint by Ahmer Khan, who accused Irani of submitting varying details about her educational qualifications in her three affidavits filed before the Election Commission for the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha polls held in 2004, 2011 and 2014.–IANS
