PANJIM: Tourism Minister Dilip Parulekar failed first year BCom twice in 1986 and 1987, but in his affidavit signed for the 2007 assembly election he declared that he is a commerce graduate.
Social activist, advocate Aires Rodrigues, with evidence of documents sourced under the Right to Information (RTI) Act, has claimed that Parulekar ‘lied on oath’ about his educational qualifications.
Rodrigues revealed that according to information obtained under RTI , Parulekar in his affidavit filed at the 2007 assembly elections had claimed that he had passed BCom from Goa University in 1988, whereas at the time of the 2012 assembly election, Parulekar stated that his highest educational qualification was High Secondary School Certificate (HSSC) from Goa Board in 1985.
Information obtained from the Dnyanprassarak Mandal College at Assagao reveals that Parulekar enrolled in that college in 1985-86 and 1986-87 for first year BCom but on both occasions failed.
Even more embarrassing for the Goa tourism minister is that his claim to have completed BCom in 1988 from Goa University does not hold true as the first BCom exam conducted by Goa University was in April 1989.
Rodrigues has demanded that Parulekar be booked for having intentionally filed false and misleading affidavits. He has also demanded that Parulekar immediately resign for lying on oath about his educational qualifications and demanded that the chief minister sack the tourism minister if he does not quit willingly.
“If Parulekar does not resign he should be sacked by Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar to ensure probity in public life in keeping with this government’s much publicized mantra of zero tolerance to corruption,” Rodrigues said.
Reacting to this Parulekar said this was a typing mistake in 2007 which was rectified in the 2012 elections. “In 2007 I was supposed to write BCom fail as my educational qualification but that ‘fail’ word was missed but in 2012 I have rectified it,” Parulekar said. Interestingly, Parulekar has not stated BCom fail in 2012, but HSSC (12th) pass.
Parulekar said that the DRO (district returning officer) had dismissed the case in 2008 filed against him by Joquim Dias on the same matter.
Parulekar has confirmed that his second affidavit is right which has stated he is HSSC passed.
