Amid a raging controversy over the graduation degree of Indian prime minister Narendra Modi, the Delhi University has finally given him a clean chit.
"We have checked our records and it has been authenticated that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's degree is authentic. He cleared the examination in 1978 and was awarded the degree in
1979," said the university's registrar Tarun Das.
Delhi chief minister and Aam Admi Party leader, Arvind Kejriwal had alleged that prime minister Modi had lied in his 2014 election declaration about his education, forcing senior members of the ruling BJP and the Indian government to hold a media conference to refute the allegations.
"Arvind Kejriwal has been spreading lies about the Prime Minister. He has tried to defame the PM. He should apologise not only to the PM but the entire nation," said BJP president Amit Shah.
Press Conference : Shri @AmitShah makes PM Shri @narendramodi's educational degrees public. #KejriwalSaySorryhttps://t.co/Ngsmz6GYJQ — BJP (@BJP4India) May 9, 2016
AAP refused to back down on its campaign against the Prime Minister even after the BJP released what it said were copies of Mr Modi's degrees - a Bachelor of Arts from Delhi University and a Master of Arts in political science from Gujarat University.
Mr. Kejriwal dismissed the degrees as "fake" and accused the BJP of having the real records at the university "sealed".
A delegation of the Aam Admi Party went to the Delhi university on Tuesday asking to verify details of the degree released by the ruling BJP.
Party leaders said that there was an atmosphere of fear that was preventing the university from speaking out.
AAP alleged discrepancies in the released documents, including different spellings of Mr. Modi's name. The party also said the fact that the degree certificate is part handwritten shows "manipulation".
Upholding Narendra Modi's degree as authentic, the university dismissed the points raised by AAP as common errors.
But, the AAP insists that the only "Narendra Modi" who graduated from Delhi University in 1978 was not the prime minister but his namesake "Narendra Mahavir Modi" from Rajasthan's Alwar.
Gujarat University had confirmed PM Modi's master of arts degree in "Entire Political Science" earlier this month.
