CBI arrests 10 persons in the case, accuses the university of paying ₹50 lakh to the team members
In a significant development, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has arrested ten individuals, including the chairman and six members of a National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) inspection committee, on allegations of accepting bribes in exchange for favorable accreditation ratings. The arrests, conducted on February 1, 2025, followed raids across 20 locations in India, including Chennai, Bengaluru, and New Delhi, resulting in the seizure of ₹37 lakh in cash, gold, mobile phones, and laptops.
The investigation centers around the Koneru Lakshmaiah Education Foundation (KLEF), which operates KL University in Guntur, Andhra Pradesh. Key figures from KLEF, such as Vice Chancellor Dr. G. Pardha Saradhi Varma, Vice-President Koneru Raja Hareen, and Director A. Ramakrishna of KL University’s Hyderabad campus, have been implicated. The CBI’s First Information Report indicates that these officials allegedly conspired with the NAAC team to secure an enhanced accreditation rating for their institution.
- As a consequence of these allegations, KL University has been barred from obtaining NAAC accreditation for five years. This scandal has raised serious concerns about the integrity of accreditation processes for higher education institutions in India.
Integrity in education should never be compromised. When rankings are bought, the value of true merit is lost.
