Sambalpur University Professor Suspended After Arrest By CBI In NAAC Rating Bribery Case

Sambalpur: The Sambalpur University suspended Professor Bulu Maharana after was arrest by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in a bribery case involving National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) rating.

Dr Maharana, a professor in the department of Library and Information Science in the Sambalpur University, was among the ten persons arrested by the CBI in connection with the NAAC rating bribery case.

Sources said the bribery scandal emerged from allegations that an Andhra Pradesh-based private deemed university, Koneru Lakshmaiah Education Foundation (KLEF), was paying bribes to secure an A++ accreditation from the NAAC evaluation team, of which Dr Maharana was a member.

On February 2, it was reported that Dr Maharana and nine other NAAC Inspection Team members had been arrested after the CBI registered a case against KLEF office bearers and NAAC team members for allegedly providing undue advantages to public servants.

The CBI subsequently sealed his government quarters in the Jyoti Vihar campus and carried out further investigations on February 4.

The probe led to CBI raids at 20 locations across India, including Chennai, Bangalore, Vijayawada, Palamu, Sambalpur, Bhopal, Bilaspur, Gautam Budh Nagar, and New Delhi. During the raids, the probe agency seized Rs 37 lakh, 6 laptops, gold, mobile phones, and other incriminating materials.

The CBI had further cited Dr Maharana’s involvement in accepting bribes to influence the accreditation process as raising serious concerns about academic integrity and transparency.