Congress leader Sam Pitroda is facing the charge falsely claiming about disruptions while lecturing at the 'Indian Institute of Technology in Ranchi'.  

Union Education Ministry put out a sharp statement pointing out there is no IIT in the Jharkhand capital. 

That is true. In Jharkhand there is no IIT. There is an Indian Institute of Information Technology, the ministry said. 

Even this  IIIT Ranchi has no record of Mr Pitroda being invited to deliver any lecture, either in-person or via a video link. 

This was stated by the union ministry. Stating that his  claim about hacker-vandals and a disrupted speech a "baseless and reckless statement... to malign the image of an extremely reputed institution". 

"This institution has stood the test of time and produced some of the brightest minds in the country..." the ministry said, labelling Mr Pitroda an "uninformed person".

"IITs' reputations are built on the merit, hard work, and achievement of many students, teachers, and academia." 

The Ministry said it “ condemns the statement In a video on discussion on the relevance of Mahatma Gandhi today Mr Pitroda was speaking about the importance of freedom of speech in a democracy by Sam Pitroda) and reiterates that any such attempt to malign the image of the premier institution will face legal repercussions." 

The row - the latest with Mr Pitroda at the centre - broke after he spoke about the 'IIT Ranchi lecture disruption' during a podcast shared on his X account on February 22. 

Mr Pitroda was speaking about the importance of freedom of speech in a democracy, and said, "Recently I was speaking at Ranchi IIT to several hundred students... and someone hacked in and started showing pornography." 

The remark was heavily criticised; the BJP called it a "very deep blow to India's sovereignty" and claimed confirmation of its position - that the Congress and China have an 'understanding'.