Pakistan: Eye on corruption; Status of Babar Awan’s alma mater in doubt

The court also ordered Mr Awan’s alma mater from claiming “directly or by implication, that Monticello is a legally qualified, non-profit, degree-granting institution of higher education, in the State of South Dakota and Hawaii, and that its degrees have the legal status as degrees from any other legally-qualified American university”.

'Dr.' Babar Awan enjoying an art gallery tour.

Ahmadiyya Times | News Watch | US Desk
Source & Credit: Daily Dawn | Pakistan
By Anwar Iqbal | July 12, 2010

WASHINGTON: The university from where Law Minister Babar Awan claims to have done his PhD is banned in the United States from issuing any degree and cannot even claim that it is a legal educational institution.

Long before the dispute over fake degrees became a political issue in Pakistan, the Circuit Court of the First Circuit in the State of Hawaii, declared that the University of Monticello was a non-recognised and non-chartered university.

The university previously claimed that it was based in Hawaii, which prompted the court to issue this order (No. 99-2769-07) on March 13, 2000.

The court banned the university from “representing, directly or by implication, that they offer real learning, real achievement, real recognition, real accreditation, real degrees and real value”.


The Monticello University is also banned from “representing, directly or by implication, that they have staff, faculty and personnel”.

The court also ordered Mr Awan’s alma mater from claiming “directly or by implication, that Monticello is a legally qualified, non-profit, degree-granting institution of higher education, in the State of South Dakota and Hawaii, and that its degrees have the legal status as degrees from any other legally-qualified American university”.

The Monticello University and other institutions associated with it, and their agents, employees and successors, directly or indirectly, individually or in concert with others, or through any corporate or other device, were permanently enjoined from: “Publishing, printing or disseminating any advertising, catalogues, promotional materials and/or written contracts for instructions” and from “representing, directly or by implication, that they are accredited in any fashion or that they operate under the laws or authority of the State.”

The university was also prevented from claiming that it had other member schools. The Monticello group was also forbidden from claiming that major international companies approve or endorse degrees from them.

They were ordered not to claim that Monticello “complies with all local, city, county, municipal, state and federal regulations”.

The Monticello University was ordered to declare that it does “utilise erroneous or misleading advertising”.

The Monticello group was also ordered to disclose that only one individual was responsible for all operations of nine schools: Locke School of Management, Roosevelt School of Public Administration, Churchill School of History & Government, DeTocqueviIle School of Educational Policy and Leadership, Franklin School of Social Sciences, Kennedy School of Criminal Justice, Dag Hammarskjold School of Diplomacy & International Studies, King’s College & Seminary and Monticello University School of Law.

The same individual was also responsible for teaching 425 courses in 14 separate disciplines.

The Monticello University was also ordered not to hide that it was not approved by the American Bar Association and that its degree holders were not qualified to sit for the bar examination in most states.



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