By: Nourhan Dakroury

Minister of Culture Alaa Abdel Aziz filed reports to the prosecutor general against Sameh Mahran, president of the Academy of Arts, for “spreading rumours concerning the reputation and integrity” of Abdel Aziz, according to state-run Al-Ahram.

According to the paper, Mahran accused Abdel Aziz in a press conference last week at the academy of having had an affair with one of his students, which should disqualify him from becoming a minister.

Mahran appealed to Prime Minister Hesham Qandil to remove the minister, accusing him of settling old disputes with leading figures in the ministry and the academy ever since he took office, according to Al-Ahram.