An assistant professor of an engineering college in Mysuru is on the run after collecting tuition and examination fees from the students.
A FIR has been lodged against Ms. Harshita, the assistant professor in Department of Electronics and Communications of ATME College of Engineering on Mysuru-Bannur road for allegedly cheating an estimated 200 students by collecting tuition and examination fees from them and misappropriating the sum.
While the accused assistant professor is absconding for about a month now, AMTE College Principal A.K. Murthy said the Varuna police had registered a case based on the complaint lodged by students and the matter is under investigation.
According to a complaint lodged by the students, the accused was repeatedly asking the students to pay the tuition fees. She had asked the students to remit the fees to her while the other teachers too had said that the fees should be paid to Ms. Harshita.
A student of 6th semester Niranjan said that he had paid ₹94,560 on October 2, 2022, and even obtained an acknowledgement receipt from her. He had also transferred the examination fee of ₹770 to a digital wallet associated with her mobile number on December 31, 2022. However, no receipt was issued to him with respect to the examination fees.
Embezzlement
According to a complaint lodged with the police, about ₹25 lakh had been embezzled by the accused. The students had paid the money both in cash and through digital wallets and through other online modes.
According to the college authorities, Ms. Harshita had collected examination fees of ₹770 from about 200 students and tuition fees ranging from ₹20,000 to ₹90,000 from a few others, but failed to remit it to the college. The receipt issued by her was dismissed as fake.
The assistant professor, who was working with the college for more than 7 years, should have made the students remit the tuition and examination fees to the college account. Instead, she had made them to remit the amount to her personal account, the principal said.
The college authorities said the students should have paid the fees directly to the Accounts Department of the college or the bank account of the institution. No member of the teaching faculty has been authorised to collect fees.
College authorities said the accused member of the teaching faculty has been suspended.
However, the students have been permitted to appear for the examinations, which started on Tuesday, July 25. “The college has permitted the students to appear for the practical exams as well as the regular examinations, which began from July 25. The matter is under investigation by the police,” said the principal.
