sanjay pandita Early Times Report
Jammu, Nov 13: The Bengaluru-based National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) has issued a show-cause notice to the Al-Falah School of Engineering and Technology in Haryana for falsely claiming NAAC accreditation on its website and other public platforms. The notice, dated Thursday, was sent by Prof. Ganesan Kannabiran, Director of NAAC, to the Registrar of Al-Falah University, questioning why the institution should not be disqualified from future accreditation consideration for allegedly misleading students, parents, and stakeholders about its accreditation status. Located around 27 km from the Haryana–Delhi border at Dhauj, Al-Falah University has recently come under intense national scrutiny following the recovery of explosives and a deadly car blast near Delhi’s Red Fort that killed 12 people and injured dozens. In the notice, Prof. Kannabiran pointed out that while two constituent colleges of Al-Falah University— Al-Falah School of Engineering and Technology (Cycle-1 accredited from March 23, 2013, to March 22, 2018, Grade ‘A’ with CGPA 3.08) and Department of Teacher Education, Al-Falah School of Education and Training (Cycle-1 accredited from March 27, 2011, to March 26, 2016, Grade ‘A’ with CGPA 3.16)— were previously accredited, both accreditations have long expired. He clarified that neither of these institutions had volunteered for Cycle-2 Assessment and Accreditation, making the continued public claim of accreditation false and misleading. NAAC noted that Al-Falah University, which itself has never been accredited, displayed on its website that it was an endeavour of the Al-Falah Charitable Trust, running “three colleges on campus—Al-Falah School of Engineering and Technology (graded A by NAAC), Brown Hill College of Engineering and Technology, and Al-Falah School of Education and Training (graded A by NAAC).” Calling this a “misrepresentation aimed at misleading the public”, the notice stated that NAAC’s Executive Committee decided to issue a formal show-cause notice seeking explanations on several points. The university has been directed to remove all accreditation-related references from its website and other public documents and to submit a compliance report within seven days of receiving the notice. Meanwhile, multiple police teams have reportedly visited the Al-Falah University campus in Dhauj, questioning over 50 doctors as part of an ongoing investigation into the “White Coat Terror” module. Authorities are said to be probing the activities of Dr. Muzammil Shakeel, Dr. Shaheen Shahid, and Dr. Umar Mohammed, suspected to be linked with the Jaish-e-Mohammed terror network. Investigators believe the group had stockpiled explosives and was allegedly planning major attacks in Delhi, including the recent car blast near Red Fort. The university, however, has denied all allegations, terming the reports “false, defamatory, and misleading.” It maintained that the institution has no connection with the accused doctors beyond their professional association and refuted claims about any “suspicious chemical substances” being found on campus. |