Mumbai college prof held for allegedly cheating students by offering admission assurance

A professor of Mumbai's RK College was arrested for allegedly cheating around 12 students on the pretext of promising them admission in the college, said the police on Thursday, March 24, according to news agency ANI.

The police said the accused also runs a private coaching centre in the Appawada area. "The accused (professor) gave an assurance of admissions into BPharm (Bachelor of Pharmacy) and took Rs 1.5 lakh per student. He also had collected all the original documents. No student was given any kind of college admission by him. We have registered the case under IPC section 420," said Prasad Pitle, Inspector (Crime), Khar police station.

The accused has been sent to police custody till March 25. The matter came to light after students complained that the accused was refusing to return their original documents and money. 

In the past
A similar case was brought to light last year where a 40-year-old former professor was accused of duping at least a dozen students with the promise of getting them admission into top South Mumbai colleges for post-graduate courses. The accused used to work with a South Bombay college but lost his job after the 2020 lockdown, Mid-Day reported. According to the local police, as per media reports, the professor had allegedly collected up to Rs 9 lakh from his victims. 

A cyber cell officer had told Mid-Day, “A Borivli resident complained to us saying the accused had taken Rs 9 lakh for her granddaughter’s admission in a top college. He also gave them receipts for the payment.” To win the trust of the student, the accused arranged e-classes. “The student was given a user ID and password. The girl even attended online classes for a week on Zoom before the professor switched off his phone,” the officer said.