Gondal trust sets up four ‘bogus’ colleges
Bhagwad Vidya Sansthan Trust run by Gopal Bhuva got AICTE approval for its institutes on the basis of fake documents; inquiry launched
By Yogesh Avasthi
Posted On Sunday, July 12, 2009 (Ahmedabad Mirror : http://www.ahmedabadmirror.com/index.aspx?Page=article§name=News%20-%20City§id=3&contentid=2009071220090712035631343597d4ab2)
Move over admission irregularities and buying seats for money. Here entire colleges are bogus. Four full-fledged colleges. The case relates to a Trust in Saurashtra which set up an MBA institute, an engineering college and two polytechnics by allegedly hoodwinking AICTE and gaining its approval on the basis of fake documents.
If that’s not bizarre enough, one of the institutes is built on government land. Shri Bhagwad Vidhya Sansthan Trust, founded by one Gopal Bhuva, had been running two polytechnics in Gondal and Jetalsar for the last two years, and was all set to open an MBA and an engineering college in Gondal this academic year. The two institutes functioning currently have a student strength of about 1,000.
However, greed proved to be the Trust’s undoing. Educational institutes in the region grew suspicious of its burgeoning ambitions, and tipped off the education department of the what was going on. A cursory scrutiny revealed that all papers submitted to Delhi-based All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) were bogus. An inquiry has subsequently been instituted to go into how the institutes were approved.
COLLEGE IN JETALSAR IS BUILT ON GOVT LAND
Talking about what all was bogus in the documents, State Technical Education director Manish Bharadwaj told AM, “The file submitted to AICTE contained fake land title documents, counterfeit papers supporting non-agriculture (NA) status of land and bogus jilla panchayat clearance.” The Bhagwad Vidhya Sansthan Trust runs Bhagwad Gopal Institute of Technology (polytechnic) in Gondal and Vivekanand Institute of Technology (polytechnic) in Jetalsar, while it had got the nod to set up a Bhagwad Gopal Institute of Engineering and an MBA college in Gondal. “Of these, the polytechnic in Jetalsar is built on government land and has been functioning for two years,” Manish Bharadwaj said.
Bhuva claimed in his papers that he owned 17 acres of land in Gondal, when he actually owned just seven acres. He had once sent back an official of the technical education department who sought land documents from him, saying he would personally submit it to the department. When he did turn up at the department’s office, he came empty-handed and attempted to explain things orally. This irritated officials no end. Later, enquiries revealed the Bhuva’s Bhagwad Vidhya Sansthan Trust deed is also bogus.
AICTE ALERTED, ALL ADMISSIONS PUT ON HOLD
The State Technical Education department has since informed AICTE of the scam, asked Rajkot collector to take immediate action against the Trust and the trustee and put on hold all admissions in its institutes. The technical education department has also set in motion the process to lodge an FIR against Gopal Bhuva. All of AM’s efforts to contact Bhuva for comments were unsuccessful. Sources said Bhuva is a former leader of student organisation NSUI.
By Yogesh Avasthi
Posted On Sunday, July 12, 2009 (Ahmedabad Mirror : http://www.ahmedabadmirror.com/index.aspx?Page=article§name=News%20-%20City§id=3&contentid=2009071220090712035631343597d4ab2)
Move over admission irregularities and buying seats for money. Here entire colleges are bogus. Four full-fledged colleges. The case relates to a Trust in Saurashtra which set up an MBA institute, an engineering college and two polytechnics by allegedly hoodwinking AICTE and gaining its approval on the basis of fake documents.
If that’s not bizarre enough, one of the institutes is built on government land. Shri Bhagwad Vidhya Sansthan Trust, founded by one Gopal Bhuva, had been running two polytechnics in Gondal and Jetalsar for the last two years, and was all set to open an MBA and an engineering college in Gondal this academic year. The two institutes functioning currently have a student strength of about 1,000.
However, greed proved to be the Trust’s undoing. Educational institutes in the region grew suspicious of its burgeoning ambitions, and tipped off the education department of the what was going on. A cursory scrutiny revealed that all papers submitted to Delhi-based All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) were bogus. An inquiry has subsequently been instituted to go into how the institutes were approved.
COLLEGE IN JETALSAR IS BUILT ON GOVT LAND
Talking about what all was bogus in the documents, State Technical Education director Manish Bharadwaj told AM, “The file submitted to AICTE contained fake land title documents, counterfeit papers supporting non-agriculture (NA) status of land and bogus jilla panchayat clearance.” The Bhagwad Vidhya Sansthan Trust runs Bhagwad Gopal Institute of Technology (polytechnic) in Gondal and Vivekanand Institute of Technology (polytechnic) in Jetalsar, while it had got the nod to set up a Bhagwad Gopal Institute of Engineering and an MBA college in Gondal. “Of these, the polytechnic in Jetalsar is built on government land and has been functioning for two years,” Manish Bharadwaj said.
Bhuva claimed in his papers that he owned 17 acres of land in Gondal, when he actually owned just seven acres. He had once sent back an official of the technical education department who sought land documents from him, saying he would personally submit it to the department. When he did turn up at the department’s office, he came empty-handed and attempted to explain things orally. This irritated officials no end. Later, enquiries revealed the Bhuva’s Bhagwad Vidhya Sansthan Trust deed is also bogus.
AICTE ALERTED, ALL ADMISSIONS PUT ON HOLD
The State Technical Education department has since informed AICTE of the scam, asked Rajkot collector to take immediate action against the Trust and the trustee and put on hold all admissions in its institutes. The technical education department has also set in motion the process to lodge an FIR against Gopal Bhuva. All of AM’s efforts to contact Bhuva for comments were unsuccessful. Sources said Bhuva is a former leader of student organisation NSUI.
