By IANS,
Bhubaneswar : Orissa’s Commerce and Transport Minister Jayanarayan Mishra faces trouble for allegedly lying about his educational qualifications in the affidavit he filed during the assembly polls four years ago.
Mishra, a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), filed an affidavit with the electoral officer in Sambalpur – the assembly constituency he represents – that said he had done his bachelor of arts in 1984 from N.A.C. College, Burla, under Sambalpur University.
The district administration launched a probe after the opposition Congress party and activists of Sambalpur Vikash Manch alleged that the information submitted by Mishra was false and that he was not a graduate.
The probe was conducted following directions by the office of the chief electoral officer, a district administrative officer said.
“We asked the university to submit a report and it informed us that no one by the name of Jayanarayan Mishra had passed the Bachelor of Arts in 1984,” Sambalpur District Collector P.K. Patnaik told IANS Monday.
“We will send this report to the office of the chief electoral officer soon,” he added.
Said Deputy Chief Electoral Officer G.Bisoi: “After receiving the report, we will examine it and if the minister is found to have submitted false information, we will ask the returning officer concerned to file a criminal case.”
“Mishra has no right to continue as a minister. He should resign immediately,” said senior Congress leader Rabi Patnaik.
Mishra was not available for comment.