Fraud within fraud: 2 Manav Bharti University staffers chargesheeted for embezzlement

The fake degree scam-hit Manav Bharti University (MBU) has once again come under the scanner as two of its employees have been charge-sheeted by Dharampur police for embezzling Rs 10 lakh from the university’s frozen account. The money was allegedly siphoned off in violation of legal restrictions and handed over to the university owners.

Solan SP Gaurav Singh revealed that an in-depth investigation exposed the involvement of staff members in the fraudulent withdrawal, even as the institution faced multiple criminal cases.

Fake degree scam spread across 13 states

1. The Special Investigation Team probing the notorious fake degree scam had unearthed a racket spanning 13 states, including Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karnataka

2.  Investigators revealed that degrees — some in courses never offered by the university —were sold for Rs 1-3 lakh, depending on the course's value and duration

3.  The scale of the scam could be assessed from the fact that 26,770 unused printed degrees without security features were found stashed on the Manav Bharti University campus. Even the University Grants Commission had earlier flagged the institution for peddling fraudulent degrees, confirming the depth of the scam

The case surfaced on December 5, 2023, when former university registrar Sandeep Sharma lodged a complaint at the Dharampur police station. While auditing university income and expenditure between September 2020 and 2021, auditors detected an unaccounted payment of Rs 10 lakh with no supporting records.

Police examination of documents confirmed that between September 7, 2020, and September 10, 2021, Dharam Singh, an executive accountant in the accounts branch, illegally withdrew the amount. Records showed that he disbursed Rs 7 lakh to fellow employee Suresh Pal Singh through two vouchers, while keeping Rs 3 lakh for himself. The discrepancy was flagged by the chartered accountant during scrutiny.

The scam took place despite all MBU accounts being sealed by the Solan police in March 2020 following the exposure of the fake degree racket. The state government had already taken over the university in September 2020 and appointed an administrator. Since all previous records had been seized by the Special Investigation Team (SIT), verification of student fees and pending staff salaries could not be carried out during the audit.

However, the police found that staff members continued to collect fee in cash from students enrolled in professional courses and used these funds for various expenditures, bypassing legal restrictions.

SP Gaurav Singh said: “Dharam Singh, with mala fide intention, diverted the amount to the university owners who were in dire need of funds at that time. This was a clear violation of law as no withdrawals were permissible after the accounts were frozen.”

Following completion of investigation, the police recently filed a chargesheet against the accused. A third accused, Aman Chaudhary, a resident of Nilokheri in Haryana, remains untraceable after leaving for abroad in December 2021. Authorities are pursuing efforts to bring him into the ambit of investigation, and a supplementary charge sheet is expected soon.