Indian politician Tiwari ordered to take paternity test Published duration 27 April 2012

image caption Mr Tiwari has held prominent ministerial positions in the past

A court in India has ordered senior Congress politician ND Tiwari to take a DNA test to verify whether a 31-year-old man is his son born out of wedlock.

The Delhi High Court has ruled that police help can be sought if Mr Tiwari refuses to give a blood sample.

Rohit Shekhar says his mother Ujjwala Sharma had a relationship with Mr Tiwari and has filed a paternity suit against the politician.

Mr Tiwari says the case is an attempt to malign his reputation.

He had opposed an earlier court order to give a blood sample, saying he could not be forced.

Correspondents say Friday's court ruling is a major setback for 86-year-old Mr Tiwari who has been a federal minister in past governments and also the chief minister of Uttar Pradesh, India's most populous state.

In 2009, he resigned as the governor of the southern state of Andhra Pradesh following an alleged sex scandal.

Opposition parties and women's right groups protested in the state capital, Hyderabad, after video footage surfaced allegedly showing Mr Tiwari in bed with three women.

His office denied the allegation, saying that the video had been doctored.