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Rajendra Prasad, the former vice chancellor of Magadh University, and nine other senior officials have been charged with corruption, according to Bihar Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar, who is also the chancellor of state universities.
In a letter to the additional director general of police, Special Vigilance Unit (SVU) of Bihar, Robert L. Chongthu, principal secretary to the governor, stated, "I am directed to say that the Chancellor, after taking into consideration the material available on record and finding prima face case against the following accused whose appointing authority is the Chancellor, has been pleased to accord prosecution sanction."
While Prasad was incarcerated for almost eight months and is currently out on bail, five other suspects have also been granted bail. Former MU finance officers Pyare Mohan Sahay, Dharmendra Tripathi, and Kauleshwar Prasad Sah, former registrars Siddhinath Prasad Yadav, Pushpendra Kumar Verma, and Jitendra Kumar, the former financial advisor Om Prakash, and former Veer Kuer Singh University finance officer and registrar, respectively, are other defendants against whom prosecution sanction has been granted.
In March of this year, SVU requested legal action be taken against 29 of the suspects. The Chancellor stated that because he was not their appointing authority, he was not compelled to approve the prosecution for the remainder. SVU has been instructed to contact the appropriate authorities for the remainder.
Additional Director General NH Khan, the head of the Special Victims Unit, stated that with the prosecution's approval, the investigative agency will petition the court for a trial, ask that the accused's bail be revoked, and request the arrest of everyone who had not yet been apprehended. "We have already submitted a charge sheet for each and every accusation. So far, the case has advanced quickly, he said.
In its 1,000-page charge sheet, SVU provided information on Prasad's disproportionate income, which was assessed to be ten times greater than his known sources of income during his time serving as acting VC of Veer Kunwar Singh University (Ara) and MU VC.
On November 17, 2021, the SVU conducted raids at Prasad's office and home, forcing him to resign and take a medical leave.
In the two institutions' purchasing of various products, the SVU charge sheet claimed that Prasad and his employees engaged in financial irregularities totaling 18 crore. First, of its type, this case included high-ranking university officials who were held accountable for a serious financial infraction.
