The new principal of Loyola College, G. Joseph Anthony Samy, who takes charge on Saturday, said he was looking forward to taking the top-ranked institution to greater heights with a specific focus on those who lack opportunities.
In the midst of allegations that seats are being ‘sold’ in autonomous colleges, he said the institute has a zero-tolerance policy for people who indulge in money making activities involving cheating parents by promising seats.
The college, he said, does not accept capitation fee and hence, parents should not trust those posing as agents of the institute. Last year, Catholic associations had filed petitions in the High Court and Supreme Court demanding that the government be directed to monitor the fee collected by Loyola College in its aided courses. A few had raised concerns on the lack of transparency during admissions.
“We have been told that some insiders in the institution have been associated with laundering of seats. The public should complain to us straightaway and we will initiate necessary action. We will leave no stone unturned in rooting out this malaise,” said Rev.Fr Antony Samy.
Prof. Antony Samy said the admission policy at Loyola College was free from any malpractice, and that there was no discrepancy in the 50 per cent seats allotted in government quota. However, he admitted to receiving hundreds of recommendation letters every day.
Professors at the college recall how last year, a man clad in the robes of a priest was caught taking money from parents, having promised them seats. “He had collected money from over 12 parents who believed they could get a seat in the college. He was handed over to the police immediately,” a professor said.
Prof. Antony Samy was head of the Loyola Outreach programme before he became the principal. The emphasis from this year, he said, would be on preventing brain drain. In the last few years, many students, said the principal, had migrated to the west in search of better opportunities. Prof. Antony Samy is the first historian to head the institute. He is also the director of Madurai Province Jesuit Archives that undertakes translation of letters written by missionaries in India to officials in Rome in the 17th century.
