Shakir Mir
SRINAGAR
Tensions have been simmering in the aftermath of fiasco at Baba Ghulam Shah Badshah University (BGBSU), Rajouri even as the Registrar accused of misappropriating funds meant for scholarship awardees was deposed after series of protests rocked campus.
A delegation of students told Kashmir Life that authorities had promised to suspend the Registrar Rashid Chaudhary from service till the investigation in the scholarship scam was completed. “We were told that he won’t be seen in the premises, yet he has been there as Officer on Special Duty,” they said. “We feel cheated.”
The students maintained that with the ex-Registrar still at large in the campus, it is likely that he might tinker with records to rig the investigation in his favour.
The scam came to fore a month ago when a scholarship awardee was inadvertently handed over a cheque meant for him. When he rushed to bank to withdraw money, he was told that the cheque had already been cashed. The incident led to a probe exposing the authorities who had been siphoning off the money.
The campus of BGBSU has been rocked by relentless protests ever since, with students boycotting classes, demanding the dismissal of Chaudhary believed to be a key culprit in the scam.
A group of Kashmiris studying at the campus had sought permission from Deputy Commissioner, Kashmir to organise a peaceful rally from Press Enclave to Civil Secretariat today, but they said, their request was turned down. “We are really disappointed,” they said. “Back at Rajouri, the Registrar who has deep nexus with the political echelons enjoys impunity and here we are not allowed to even carry out protests.”
The students lamented that because of one single “influential” person, the varsity has kept the career of almost 2200 students at stake. “They have closed down the varsity till further notice. They are so helpless before Chaudhary that they can’t act against him,” they said.
The students vowed to go ahead with the protest program in the coming days. “We won’t end this here,” they said.
