The University of Calicut has reportedly found 211 fake certificates during their genuineness verification process in the past 22 years.
Various embassies, organisations, and recruiting agencies remit fees and submit different kinds of certificates to the university for verification of their genuineness, mainly to check the credentials of prospective employees. Many people get their jobs confirmed in Gulf countries only after this process.
It was P. Madhu, Senate member, who raised a question related to fake certificates and the police cases registered on such charges, ahead of the Senate meeting scheduled for March 26. He was told that as many as 28 fake certificates were identified by the tabulation wing and 183 others by the digital wing at the Pareeksha Bhavan. These figures pertain to the period between January 1, 2000 January 31, 2022. However, he was also informed that there was no consolidated data on the police cases. Steps had been taken compile the information. This reply was given from various sections as an explanatory note to the Syndicate.
However, the above-mentioned information was missing from the agenda of the Senate meeting approved by the Syndicate. The agenda just says that the consolidated data pertaining to the period between January 1, 2000 and January 31, 2022 was not available, and that the cases that the authorities came across had been forwarded to the police. This led to the allegation that the installation of holograms could not prevent the practice of issuing fake certificates.
Syndicate members aligned to the United Democratic Front (UDF) also claimed that the original reply from the Pareeksha Bhavan was hidden by the authorities from the agenda to help the “fake certificate lobby”.
Mr. Madhu said on Wednesday that he would seek a clarification on the matter at the Senate meeting. “The university can’t create a smokescreen around it,” he added.
However, E.K. Sathish, Registrar, told The Hindu that the Syndicate had felt a lack of clarity in the initially given data because of which it was put on hold. The sections concerned had been told to make authentic information available at the earliest, he added.
