LLB degrees of nine more lawyers found fake

LAHORE: On Monday, nine more LLB degrees were found fraudulent by a four-member committee investigating fake degree cases at Punjab University (PU).

One month ago, the Punjab Bar Council (PbBC) sent 230 LLB degrees for verification to the PU ahead of its election.

The PU Department of Examinations had previously tested the 224 degree record, which was found to be accurate and rendered the candidates’ six degree cases unjust, finding them baseless. Later it turned out that out of the 224 confirmed degrees, the department had again verified a bogus degree.

The record of Jameel Asghar Bhatti, the PbBC winning candidate, was re-checked and it was found that genuine verification had been given to his false degree. The verification letter was signed and released by the certificate section of Assistant Controller Parshant Singh and Admin Officer Bakhtawar.

PU VC Professor Niaz Ahmed, however, formed a committee of four members, namely Pro Vice Chancellor Professor Dr Saleem Mazhar of PUASA, President Professor Dr Mumtaz Anwar of PUASA, former Examination Controller Professor Dr Sajid Rashid and Professor Iftikhar Tarrar of University Law College, to prove the significant irregularity of part of the certificate section.

PU committee has so far declared 15 degrees of PbBC members bogus

During its investigation, the probe committee found a total of 15 out of 230 degrees to be bogus and submitted its opinion to the Supreme Court of Pakistan on Monday.

The study, available to Dawn, states that in 1992, 1996 and 1992, Syed Tahir, Muhammad Hafeez and Syed Muhammad Imran had taken exams, respectively, but were deemed to have failed. False degrees were also announced for Javed Bashir, Syed Tayyab Hussain Shah and Safdar Saleem in 1994, 1993 and 1996, respectively.

In the 1996 and 1997 supplementary examinations, Muhammad Mazhar Iqbal appeared and was declared to have failed. The degree of Tariq Riaz was given in 1991 and the degree of Jamil Asghar Bhatti in 1996, and both these degrees were found to be fraudulent.

The study further notes that Chaudhry Shah Nawaz Ismail appeared in 1996 and 1997 in the supplementary test, Tahir Mehmood in 1993 in the annual examination, Norang Hayat in 1994 in the supplementary examination, and Amir Manzoor in 1998 in the supplementary examination, and they were deemed to have failed.

Failure was also announced by Muhammad Ahsan in the 1997 annual test and Raja Farooq Akram in the 1992 annual exam.

PU Registrar Khalid Khan told Dawn that his report had been delivered by the committee before the Pakistan Supreme Court. He said that on December 8 (today) the university was conducting a Syndicate meeting to fix the responsibility of the persons involved in issuing bogus degrees verification. He said those involved would have to face action under the Productivity, Discipline and Transparency Act on Punjab Employees (PEEDA).