SRM university chancellor TR Pachamuthu arrested for allegedly duping over 100 students

SRM university Chancellor TR Pachamuthu has reportedly been arrested by the Chennai Police after parents of over 100 students complained against him on Friday.

The parents claimed that they had paid huge amounts for medical seats in SRM Medical College, The Hindu  reported.

The complaint was filed after Kollywood film producer Madhan, who also claimed to have worked as an admission agent for the college, mysteriously went missing on 27 May.

A note written by Madhan, which went viral on social media, suggested that he was facing opposition from others within the SRM family, who disliked his growing closeness to the SRM chairman, The New Indian Express reported.

Madhan had also claimed that he was going to attain ‘Samadhi’ in Varanasi before he went missing. He blamed SRM group of Institutions and said that he used to work as an admission agent for them.

Madhan had lamented that though crores of rupees had been collected from parents, they would not be able to keep their promise of admission to students with NEET coming into force and changing the entire admission process, The News Minute reported.

Madhan’s family alleged that he went missing after paying all the money collected from students to Chancellor Pachamuthu. Several parents had paid lakhs of rupees to Madhan hoping for their ward’s admission in SRM colleges.

According to reports, about 109 cheating cases were registered by the Chennai Police and Madhan had collected about Rs 73 crore from the parents. The parents had named Pachamuthu along with Madhan in their complaint.

Pachamuthu was consequently questioned overnight. He, however, denied any links with Madhan and claimed that Madhan had created fake documents in the company’s name and forged his signatures.

Police sources, reported The Indian Express , said Pachamuthu has been arrested under IPC sections 420 (cheating), 406 (criminal breach of trust) and 34 (common intention).

Earlier in 2013, CBI had conducted raids in SRM and Madhan’s production house, which had yielded unaccounted cash. So far, four persons have been arrested in the case. They are Vijayapandiyan, an associate of Madhan, Dr Bargavan Pachamuthu, a medical doctor and also the state sectary of the medical wing of Indhiya Jananayaka Katchi (IJK) party (a party founded by Pachamuthu), Shanmugam, Madurai district sectary of the IJK party and Babu, Dindugal district secretary of IJK party.

However, The Indian Express reported that Madhan still remains missing.