When did this Pakistani lawmaker actually graduate?

ISLAMABAD - A woman lawmaker in Pakistan’s Punjab assembly holds a graduation degree that was issued in 1991, but she insists that she graduated in 1996.

She is refusing to appear before officials who are probing fake degrees.

Seemal Kamran, a member of the Punjab Assembly, is among those few lawmakers who have been continuously ignoring notices issued by the Election Commission asking them to appear before its officials looking into lawmakers degrees, Dawn reported Tuesday.

Kamran’s case came up when officials investigated cases of lawmakers accused of holding fake or invalid degrees.

A Punjab University report said Kamran’s degree was fake and had never been issued by it.

A condition was imposed a few years back that candidates have to hold a graduation degree to contest polls. but the Supreme Court last year waived the condition. The 2008 general elections had been held prior to that.

In all 15 lawmakers were asked to appear before the Election Commission officials Monday, but more than half neither appeared in person nor sent their representatives.

Seemal Kamran and three other Punjab assembly members - Shamaila Rana, Farah Deeba and Syeda Majida Zaidi - have been told that they are being given the last chance to appear Oct 21. If they don’t appear on that day, their cases will be closed and placed before the Chief Election Commissioner for final orders.