Fake bill scam by 4 nursing colleges suspected in Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Science

A suspected fake bill scam has been reported at Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences (RGUHS), with four nursing colleges allegedly generating dubious receipts for affiliation fees.

As per the request submitted by the finance officer to the additional chief secretaries of the medical education and finance department, demanding a high-level inquiry, colleges have paid lower amounts than receipts generated towards affiliation fees. For example, one college paid Rs 2,224 against the receipt of Rs 2.24 lakh.

When the irregularities came to the notice of the finance officer, with suspicions of a bigger scam, he asked the vice-chancellor to place the matter before the Syndicate.

Probe committee

Though the vice chancellor said that the university had constituted an internal inquiry committee to investigate the matter, the finance officer, in his letter to the government, accused university authorities of not initiating action.

Of the four colleges accused of generating fake bills, two each are from Bidar and Kalaburagi.

As explained by the finance officer in the letter, the colleges were asked to submit bank account pass sheets. 

“The colleges not submitting the pass sheets initially and submitting latest ones after remitting the fee amounts is suspicious. When they had not paid the prescribed fee amount, it is a big question as to how the online receipt was generated?” reads the letter.

“It needs to be investigated to know the involvement of the university staff, for how many years such things are happening and the modus operandi,” the letter said.

‘Bigger scam’

Dr H J Jai Krishna, a senior member of the university Syndicate who raised the issue in the Syndicate meeting and demanded a CID or Lokayukta inquiry, said, “This needs to be investigated properly as we suspect a bigger scam.”

When contacted, vice chancellor Dr M K Ramesh said, “When the inquiry by the internal committee constituted is still under process, the finance officer writing to the government without taking permission from higher-ups is surprising. We will write to the government and seek an explanation from the finance officer.”

Internal inquiry

Ramesh said, “Before filing the police complaint, we need to have an internal inquiry. So, we have constituted a three-member committee headed by Dr Venkatagiri Gowda, a Syndicate member. The committee is yet to complete the inquiry.”