Post-Baisoya, DU principals bat for forensics experts to check certificates
The recommendations were made to the committee on undergraduate admission policy, some of whom said the Baisoya case had harmed DU’s reputation.
Principals of colleges under the Delhi University (DU) are learnt to have recommended measures, including hiring forensics experts, to check authenticity of mark sheets and certificates that candidates submit during admission.
This comes months after a student, Ankiv Baisoya, won the presidency to the DU students’ union (DUSU), but was later found to have gained admission through fake certificates issued under the name of a university from Tamil Nadu.
The recommendations were made to the committee on undergraduate admission policy, some of whom said the Baisoya case had harmed DU’s reputation.
According to a panel member, the recommendations were made by some principals who are special invitees to the panel.
“We have received recommendation to make it mandatory for all colleges to hire forensic experts to verify mark sheets and certificates,” said the member. “The university had asked colleges to do the same last year as well, but only a few colleges followed through. The others cited lack of resources for not doing so. Most colleges, therefore, got their faculty trained in forensically checking certificates.”
Last year, DU had said it would issue guidelines on hiring of forensics experts. However, nothing had been issued so far.
Presently, some colleges like Ramjas College, Dyal Singh College and Kalindi College use professional teams to verify candidates’ certificates.
Manoj Khanna, principal of Ramjas College, said, “Every year, we receive fake certificates. We receive cases in which candidates who are residents of Delhi but submit caste or disability certificates issued by some other state. We have had forensics experts since 2013.”
A fake mark sheet case was busted the Ramjas campus in 2012.
Another recommendation was to making it mandatory for colleges to display names of authorised and unauthorised education boards. “Generally, colleges keep lists of such boards. If they are displayed prominently, it will discourage people vying for admission using certifcates from fake boards,” said a committee member. “Some recent incidents have harmed the reputation of the university to some extent. We have to be very vigilant.
Aryabhatta College principal Manoj Sinha said the committee must give more time to colleges to verify documents. “Hiring forensics experts will require money and that can only be generated through students’ admission fee. It’s better that the university allows us to keep the original certificates and mark sheets of the candidates rather than making it mandatory to return them within two days of admission. It will make a lot of difference,” he said.