The Kunnamangalam police have booked 16 members of the management and faculty of the Karanthur-based Markaz Institute of Engineering and Technology (MIET), on charges of cheating students. The case was registered on Tuesday under Section 420 of the Indian Penal Code on the basis of a complaint filed by Mohammed Nasheed, a leader of the Markaz Students Samara Samiti, who alleged that the college had cheated students by offering them unrecognised vocational courses.
Kanthapuram booked
Those who were booked on the basis of the complaint included Kanthapuram A.P. Aboobacker Musliyar, the Chancellor of Jamia Markaz, and the heads of various departments.
Seeking legal action against the college authorities, the students had been on an indefinite agitation in front of the campus. District Collector U.V. Jose had set up a three-member technical committee to probe the issue.
Courses scrapped
The Markaz authorities had clarified that the course was scrapped temporarily in 2013, following directions from the Ministry of Human Resources Development. They had argued that the course was launched only to train those who could not secure admission to engineering colleges and polytechnics, and it had been clearly stated in the course prospectus.
In a communication issued here on Wednesday, the Markaz management said they would fight the new case legally.