Vijayawada: A complaint filed by Chilakapalli Surya Prakasha Rao, director of the the AP National Institute of Technology, Tadepalligudem, West Godavari, with the police has boomeranged on him to the extent that demands are being raised that he be removed from his job.
In his complaint lodged on May 31 with the Tadepalligudem Rural police, Mr Rao had accused his former students, identified as Lokesh and Vishnumurthy, of extorting money from him by threatening him that they had a video of him sexually abusing a female PhD student. Mr Rao claimed that the video was morphed.
On Friday, Badela Kranthi Kumar, an alumnus of NIT, Warangal (2009-13 batch) and Supreme Court advocate, dashed off a letter to Union HRD minister Ramesh Pokhriyal, seeking an impartial and independent inquiry into allegations of sexual abuse of female students and extortion of money from male students to award PhD degrees by Mr Rao, who was at that time a professor at the NIT, Warangal. To back his demand, Mr Kumar cited the FIR (109/2019, dated May 31, 2019) and said that the AP NIT director has himself admitted paying money to students to ensure their silence.
Mr Kumar said that after verifying the remand case dairy of investigating officer, video recording of ‘act’ submitted to the police by the accused student, and also based on several former students approaching him with the issue, he has written to the Union minister demanding immediate suspension of the director pending further inquiry.
He said that it was not the first time that allegations of sexual misconduct against faculty members of NIT, Warangal were made, but thus far he had no concrete evidence. Since he had clear evidence against Mr Prakasha Rao, he had acted, Mr Kumar said.
He added that the aggrieved former students of NIT, Warangal were unwilling to come forward fearing damage to reputation and their career.
