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Kannur University professor jailed six years in fake appointment fraud case
A Kannur court sentenced a Kannur University assistant professor to six years in prison for creating fake documents in a hiring case. The ruling capped a vigilance probe into alleged salary fraud and misuse of university funds.
A court in Kannur on Thursday sentenced a Kannur University assistant professor to a total of six years' imprisonment and imposed a fine for financial irregularities linked to the alleged creation of fake documents to show the appointment of a professional assistant.
The Kannur Vigilance Court, presided over by Judge K Ramakrishnan, found Dr N K Deepak, 54, guilty under various sections and imposed a fine of Rs 80,000, officials said. Deepak is an assistant professor at Swami Anandatheertha Campus, Payyanur, and a native of Chirakkal in Kannur.
According to the prosecution, the Kannur University registrar in 2008 issued an order to appoint a professional assistant on a daily-wage basis in the Physics Department at Swami Anandatheertha Campus. Deepak, who was in charge of the Physics Department, was entrusted with selecting the professional assistant, officials said.
He allegedly obtained a copy of the qualification certificate of a friend of another professional assistant at the campus, added a fake address and prepared a forged qualification certificate.
He then allegedly misled university authorities into believing that a professional assistant had been appointed and misappropriated university funds by showing that the amount had been paid as salary to the purported employee. The Vigilance Kannur Unit registered a case against Deepak and, after completing the investigation, filed a chargesheet before the Kannur Vigilance Court.
Vigilance Public Prosecutor Anoop K B appeared for the prosecution. Former Vigilance Kannur Unit DySP V Madhusoodanan and the present unit head DySP Babu Peringeth conducted the investigation, officials said, in a case that ended with Deepak being sentenced to six years' imprisonment and fined Rs 80,000.
