After marks, attendance row in Anna University

Barely months after an examination marks scandal rocked the Anna University an attempt is being made to allegedly fudge the attendance records of influential students enrolled in the premier engineering institution in Chennai.

Informed sources said over the past few days, some students, who were rarely seen in classrooms, have been meeting various Heads of Departments (HoDs) bluntly asking them to alter their attendance records so that they could appear for the semester examination. Some of these students were also carrying a letter allegedly issued by a senior administrator in the university telling the HoDs that their request for attendance “may be considered.”

While many HoDs have reluctantly obliged, at least two of them are learnt to have refused to fudge the attendance records.

“Angered by this, a few students have held out indirect threats to faculty members and even hinted at physically harming them,” alleges a professor.

According to a senior professor, these students were given admission under the industrial consortium quota and VVIP quota.

As per university rules, only students with a minimum of 75 per cent attendance in classrooms are allowed to appear for the examination.

In the case of students who were absent on medical grounds or to participate in sports, they are permitted to write the examination with 65 per cent attendance.

“However, many of these influential students have missed out over two-thirds of the classroom lectures and practical sessions. Therefore, they cannot appear for the examination,” says another faculty member.

It is alleged that a professor, who had briefly served in a different capacity in the Vice Chancellor’s office a few years ago, was behind the racket.

“Many HoDs obliged the students with great hesitation and granted them attendance. But what they do not realise it that they could be made scapegoats if there is any inquiry into the racket in the future,” a professor says.

She points out that recently after the examination racket was exposed, a professor and two assistant professors were suspended for awarding higher marks to failed students although during the inquiry they had submitted that they had acted on instructions from the then Vice Chancellor.

University authorities including officiating Vice Chancellor P Kaliraj were unavailable for comment.

In 2007 too when grandchildren of a few prominent politicians belonging to the DMK and PMK lacked attendance, the university had granted them exemption from the norm to allow them to sit for the examination.

The issue had rocked the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly prompting then Electricity Minister Arcot N Veerasamy to declare that his grandson had on his own decided not to appear for the examination.