College probed for secretly filming inquiry

Updated on: Thursday, July 23, 2009

Chennai: A self-financing engineering college on the city outskirts is under probe from the Mercantile Marine Department (MMD) of the ministry of shipping for allegedly filming the proceedings of an in-camera inquiry with students conducted by officials of the department following complaints about poor amenities. In a separate action, the All India Council for Technical Education too has sought an explanation from the institution.

The matter relates to a complaint lodged with the director general of shipping, Mumbai, by some BE Marine Engineering students of SAMS College of Engineering and Technology in Tiruvallur district in June last year about issues including water scarcity, bad food and inadequate faculty. Following this, the MMD in Chennai informed the college that an inquiry would be conducted with the students.

However, the management members allegedly went into damage control of a different kind. "They fixed secret cameras inside the room where the inquiry was to take place and tutored the students on how they should behave during the inquiry," says advocate V S S Ramkumar, a former legal adviser to the institution, who has since fallen out with the management.

A DVD provided by Ramkumar shows two management members (one is not seen in the video) tutoring a student. "You talk boldly to them. You start saying Nothing sir, nothing has happened in the college. Everything is smooth sir," a member is heard telling him. Another member is heard saying "We can do anything before you join the ship (complete the course). But that is not our intention."

The other video shows the proceedings of the in-camera inquiry conducted by shipping ministry officers A R Sundaram and Ranjit Narayan. Three students, who enter the room one after another, deny that the signature in the complaint is theirs. On suspicion, Narayan examines the ID card of a student to check his signature, while Sundaram asks him to sign on a paper to verify if the signature matches with the one in the complaint. All the boys say there is no problem on the campus.

When the inquiry seemingly hits a dead-end, Narayan is heard saying, presumably out of frustration, "It's all over. Makes it simple for us. We can always say that the management has taken action."

Ramkumar, who has lodged complaints against the college with the MMD, AICTE and governor, claims the DVD was provided to him by a campus insider.

College secretary M Jayaraman, however, accuses Ramkumar and his brother Sidharth (both are his brothers-in-law) of blackmailing him. "We have nothing to do with this. I suspect that Sidharth, who was sacked as chief administration officer (admissions), had filmed the inquiry proceedings secretly and is using it to blackmail us into parting with money. Why should we film something that will go against us? We want the police to inquire into this. Already complaints are pending against Sidharth," he said.

Sidharth denies the charges, saying "I never demanded any money. I am also open to any probe and I am planning to sue the management for defaming me."

College probed for secretly filming inquiry

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