Romania's leftist Prime Minister Victor Ponta looks on before a meeting with interim President Crin Antonescu and the chairmans of both the lower and upper chambers of the parliament at the presidential palace in Bucharest June 16, 2012. The EU and IMF ha
Romania PM plagiarized thesis, university says
Romania PM plagiarized thesis, university says
Posted : Friday, 20 July 2012 05:21AM

BUCHAREST (Reuters) - Romanian Prime Minister Victor Ponta plagiarized a large part of his doctoral thesis, a panel of academics at Bucharest University which awarded the qualification, said on Friday.

"Plagiarism elements were identified in the doctoral thesis of Mr. Victor Pinta especially in chapters one and three," said Marian Popescu, president of Bucharest University's ethics commission.

Ponta denies the charges and says only an education ministry panel, which cleared him of plagiarism, is entitled to judge the case. Another academic panel has concluded Ponta plagiarized a large part of the thesis, but Ponta said the finding was politically motivated and he would not resign.

(Reporting by Sam Cage, Radu Marinas and Ioana Patran)

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