Seat-selling scam ails Unani college

Two major scams have hit the Bangalore Government Unani Medical College (BGUMC), where medical seats were allegedly sold to students from outside Karnataka, and many were allowed to write exams despite not meeting the attendance criterion.

Those accused of operating the racket are Joint Director (Medical Education) of Ayush Directorate Dr Hasibunnisa, BGUMC Principal Dr Ifthikharuddin, former Assistant Administrative Officer A L Jayaramu, second division assistant (case worker) Meenakshi T A and typist Narasamma.

The irregularities came to light in July this year when the current BGUMC principal wrote to the Director of Ayush, Vijayakumar Gogi, complaining about them.

Gogi, in turn, brought the matter to the notice of the Principal Secretary of the Health and Family Welfare Department.

In his letter to Principal Secretary Sivasailam, Gogi stated that after the completion of the CET selection process, the Directorate of Ayush called for a walk-in interview. However, three students who were selected through the CET did not pursue the course and left.
The BGUMC management did not notify the three vacant seats to the directorate. The motives were very clear: The management “sold” the seats to N Vinaya, Mallikarjuna Galipalli and Nallabotalu Venkataprasad, who hail from other states.

Gogi noted, “This is a serious irregularity. This has denied the opportunity to many meritorious students from the State who had appeared for the CET and walk-in interview. A wrong precedent has been set deliberately, without following the norms. Three outstation students have been accommodated at the cost of meritorious students.”

He added that this incident has denied students from Karnataka, who joined private colleges, an opportunity to get stipend and other benefits at the government college. “It is evident that it is not an ordinary work, but a racket that is operating,” said Gogi in his letter.

It has also emerged that as per the Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences and CCIM regulations, the Bachelor of Unani Medicine and Surgery (BUMS) is a 5.5-year course, including a housemanship of one year, but the BGUMC authorities created forged documents and fudged attendance registers to allow 12 students to write examinations.

The students are Hasib Ahmed, Ameen Shamail, S Safi-un-Nisa, Mahbub Pasha, Syed Waheed-ur-Rehman, Mohammad Danish Farhan, Junnaid-ur-Rehman, Siddmatham Yasmin, Shazia Begum, Ramseen E, Fatima Dilshan C S and Muthyala Venkateshwara Rao.

The Head of the Department had not given attendance and practical examination marks. Yet, the principal and the others forged the documents to allow the students to write exams.

The Ayush director noted: “This reveals that an organised racket is operating, which gives seats to outstation students illegally and allows them to write exams without required attendance and without appearing for internal exams.”

Gogi recommended suspension of all these officers and further investigation.

He said: “If they are not suspended immediately, there is every possibility that they would tamper with the records.” The file was moved to the Principal Secretary on October 7, but there is no information on whether any action was taken against those named in the report.