Fake certificate racket: V-C, chairman of Bhopal's SRK University arrested

Hyderabad: A team of Hyderabad police visited SRK University in Bhopal on Tuesday and arrested the Vice-Chancellor of the university, Dr. M. Prasahanth Pillai, and retired Vice-Chancellor/chairman Dr. S.S Kushwah.

The two were produced before the court.

In February 2022, four fake certificate racket cases were registered in Malakpet, Asif Nagar, Musheerabad, and Chaderghat police stations against some agents of educational consultants and the management of Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan University (SRKU) for providing educational certificates to students without any exam and attendance by collecting huge money. All these cases were transferred to the Special Investigation Team (SIT), Hyderabad police.

SRK University issued a total of 101 educational certificates to students. Among them, 44 certificates were seized from the students; of these, 13 were BTech and BE certificates and the remaining 31 were for various degrees.

In-charge Vice-Chancellor Dr. Sunil Kapoor obtained anticipatory bail and an assistant professor, Ketan Singh, was arrested in the case.

Seven agents – A. Srikanth Reddy, A. Srinadh Reddy, Patwari Shashidar, P.K.V Swamy, Gunti Maheswar Rao, Asif Ali, T. Ravikanth Reddy, and Uppari Ranga Raju – of various educational institutions of Hyderabad were also arrested.

Nineteen students were arrested. The parents of six students obtained anticipatory bail while the parents of another six students received notices under section 41A of the CrPC.

The additional commissioner of Hyderabad police said efforts are in progress to arrest the other accused persons of SRK University management and the remaining students who obtained certificates fraudulently.