Both also need to pay penalty worth Rs5000 each in addition to the sentence. PHOTO: CREATIVE COMMONS
ISLAMABAD/ DI KHAN: A district and session judge awarded a three-year sentence in jail to former MPA Khalifa Abdul Qayyum and one-year sentence to MNA Mir Humayun Aziz Kurd for holding fake degrees, Express News reported on Tuesday.
Both the members were also fined Rs5,000 each.
The court was hearing the cases of the politicians who allegedly hold a fake degree and were disqualified because of it.
Qayyum had appeared in the court in December 2010 and clarified that his degree was issued by an institution that was not recognised by the HEC – something that he was unaware of. He had then requested not to label his degree fake or bogus.
Qayyum had won the elections in 2008 as an independent candidate.
The Higher Education Commission (HEC) on March 29, declared that degrees of 54 politicians are fake and another 189 were yet to be verified.
Around 249 parliamentarians had not submitted their Matric and FA degrees to the commission yet, the election commission secretary said on March 26.
Having a graduation degree is no more a legal requirement to participate in elections, but anyone who is proved of having forged in the past stands disqualified to take part in elections.
SC issues detailed verdict
The Supreme Court issued a detailed verdict in the fake degrees case on Tuesday and ordered the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to take action against all fake degree holders.
The 8-page verdict, penned down by Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, stated that it was the ECP’s responsibility to initiate action against fake degree holders and to disqualify them.
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They probably got the fake degree for more than Rs.5000/--------------
They should be sentenced with jail + fine + life time ban in politics
Rs 5,000 is a massive penalty.
Please give him C class as he committed fraud on the entire country and the constituency
Aren't these penalty figures affected by the inflation? A penalty less than the minimum wage is indeed laughable.
Five thousand for theft from public office? I miss the old days when one has to loose his hand.
Pakistan may be poor but we are on the right path. First legitimate democratic transfer of power and for the first time an independent judiciary. 10 more years of this and we may hopefully become a civilized society. Regards, Rehan