New Delhi: Lawyer Jitender Singh Tomar is Delhi’s minister of law and justice.
An Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader, he has also been given charge of the crucial Home ministry, which was earlier handled by chief minister Arvind Kejriwal himself. In addition, Tomar also handles the tourism, art and culture portfolio.
Inspired by Kejriwal’s resolve to work for the marginalised, Tomar joined AAP in 2013. Before that, the 49-year-old was associated with Congress, though he never fought an election.
During Delhi Assembly Elections 2015, he was elected from Tri Nagar constituency after trouncing Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) Nand Kishore Garg by 22,311 votes.
Tomar holds an LLB degree from Tilak Manjhi Bhagalpur University in Bihar. But there have been allegations that he enrolled as a lawyer on a ‘false and bogus’ degree, charges that he denies.
In an exclusive interview with Gulf News, he clears the air on the controversies surrounding him.
What transpired in your meeting with chief minister Arvind Kejriwal that he refused to take any action against you despite reports of your law degree being ‘fake’?
The chief minister has realised that rumours against me are baseless. During our meeting, I showed him the documents in my possession and he was convinced. He said that it is a conspiracy to tarnish my image and of the party and has stood by me. But the whole issue has been affecting my family. My wife and children tell me to quit politics, saying they want a peaceful life, as the biased media reporting is leading to my image being sullied in public.
It all began during the Assembly elections?
Yes, when it was becoming clear that Garg, my contender, would lose his seat, he began playing dirty tricks. He filed an election petition in the High Court raising questions about the authenticity of my graduation and law degrees. His counsel Santosh Kumar Sharma, who is embroiled in several legal cases, including forgery and misappropriation of funds worth Rs13 crore [Rs130 million or Dh7.5 million], had filed an application [through his counsel Deepak Vohra] on a plain sheet of paper, which they refer to as RTI application! Meanwhile, I have procured complete records of the college register and other details for my defence, wherein K.S. Saket P.G. College, Ayodhya, which is affiliated to Ram Manohar Lohia Avadh University, Faizabad, Uttar Pradesh, has accepted that I obtained a BSc degree between 1986 and 1988 and that it was then a two-year course. Mentioning my correct roll number, the college maintained that the roll number mentioned by the applicant was wrong. Anyone would agree that it is not possible for any university to dig out records dating back to nearly 30 years within a day. But the BJP managed it and got it all wrong!
But why was the petition withdrawn by them?
I had threatened to file a defamation case against Vohra, so he withdrew the petition. But later, I was shocked by the electronic media coverage. They proclaimed: A big shock for AAP. High Court ‘rejects’ Tomar’s petition. I am amazed by the kind of journalism we have. It was not me who had filed the petition, so where was the question of it being rejected? But this circus went on for two days. And then the media accuses us of trying to put gag orders.
Is that why AAP is trying to restrain the media?
Yes, precisely. But when we say that, both the BJP and the Congress stand up against us. On the other hand, when the media does awfully wrong reporting, we are expected to sit quietly. They become judgemental, without clarifying the facts.
But why has Tilka Manjhi University in Bhagalpur, Bihar, said that the provisional degree, on the basis of which you enrolled as a lawyer, is false?
It is because BJPs Garg is still working against me at the behest of his party. He is affiliated with two educational institutions in the country — one in Himachal Pradesh and the other in Delhi. Since he is well versed with the education system, he must have thought it would be easier for him to manipulate records. They have gone to the extent of tampering documents in the university. These include my provisional certificate, which is in someone else’s name. Funnily, instead of the law stream, they dug out documents pertaining to arts stream! Naturally, neither the name, nor the roll number tallies. And importantly, even the Vice Chancellor of the university has been roped in into all this by BJP.
Why is there confusion about the year in which you enrolled as a law student and the year in which you got the law degree?
We get law degree in 3 years, but I had missed a year in between. So, though I enrolled in 1994-95, I completed law in 1998-99. I have solid evidence to prove my innocence. (Shows documents in his possession, including photocopies of the college admission register with his name enrolled in it, along with names of other students, the mark sheet and the final year documents).
But why have you kept silent and not shown the documents to the media?
That is not correct. I had called a press conference last month and showed the documents to everyone. Before that, though, I asked them to put off their video cameras. But they wanted me to say it all ‘on camera’, stating that otherwise their bosses would not accept my version. I declined to do so. My worry was that if I hand over the documents to the media, they would produce twisted reports under political pressure. But any which way, maligning me continues. Even then, I am sitting patiently, because the case is sub judice, I will not disobey the judiciary and will produce all evidence in the court in August.
Why have you sought so much time to appear before the court?
It is not out of my choice. The High Court has given August 20 as the date to file my records. Everything will be clear then.
It is being reported that the Bar Council of Delhi (BCD) has cancelled your registration as an advocate and initiated criminal proceedings against you?
The truth is that when I became law minister on March 14, as is the norm, I sent an application to the BCD for suspension of my license for practicing as a lawyer. The application was accepted. But then we saw media reports claiming the Bar Council had suspended me! In fact, it all began with the Bar Council, which is full of BJP sympathisers. One can make out their intentions from the fact that while the complaint with them was lodged on March 10, they had initiated the inquiry on March 7 — a full three days before the complaint!
So, what do you intend to do once your name gets cleared by the court?
I intend to take action against Garg by filing a defamation case.
