Belagavi: A major alleged corruption scandal involving tender rigging was exposed at Rani Channamma University (RCU) following a complaint filed with the Lokayukta by RTI activist Dattatrya Kulkarni from Bengaluru. The complaint alleges that university officials colluded with private companies to manipulate tenders for the procurement of markscards and degree certificates, resulting in a multi-crore scam.According to the complaint, university officials, including the vice-chancellor Prof CM Thyagaraja, registrar Santosh Kamagouda, former registrar (evaluation) Ravindranath N Kadam, and finance officer MA Sapna, conspired with Printography Systems (India) Pvt Ltd. and Hitech Print Systems Ltd. to inflate tender costs. The initial tender value of close to Rs 5.2 crore was increased to Rs 7.2 crore, with the final contract awarded at Rs 6.4 crore. It is alleged that Rs 2 crore was paid as bribes to the officials involved.The complaint further highlights that the companies supplied substandard Teslin paper, which was falsely claimed to be tear-resistant. The material, priced at Rs 35 per unit in other universities, was procured at Rs 66 per unit by Rani Channamma University. The activist alleges that inspection reports were manipulated to approve substandard materials.The complaint also points out multiple violations of legal and govt directives. The university’s decision to outsource examination activities to private vendors contravenes a high court of Karnataka order, which prohibits such outsourcing due to concerns over tampering. Additionally, the university ignored a Karnataka Higher Education Department order mandating the use of digital markscards and certificates through NAD/Digilocker, opting instead for physical printing.Further, the tender process violated Karnataka Transparency in Public Procurement (KTPP) Act rules. The tender was floated on the Government e-Marketplace (GEM) instead of the Karnataka Public Procurement Portal (KPPP), bypassing mandatory transparency and publicity requirements.The RTI activist has submitted evidence, including manipulated reports and tender details, to the Lokayukta. He has urged syndicate and academic council members to cooperate with the investigation to avoid legal repercussions under the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988.Speaking to the TOI, Lokayukta SP Hanumantharaya confirmed receiving the complaint. “We are yet to register the complaint as we are going through it, which was received on Friday evening,” he said.This development has added to the troubles of vice-chancellor Prof Thyagaraja, who is already facing multiple allegations. These include charges of submitting forged educational qualification documents to secure the vice-chancellor’s post a defamation case registered at Kakati police station under the SC/ST (prevention of atrocities) Act, filed by a university professor; a financial irregularities case linked to the Skill Development Corporation; and allegations of denying a convocation certificate to a woman PhD scholar on caste-discriminatory grounds, among others.
