Regional commissioner to probe illegal appointment at Folklore University

Haveri: The regional commissioner of Belagavi will visit Karnataka State Folklore University, Gotagodi, on Feb 19 to conduct an inquiry into the alleged illegal appointment of an assistant registrar, following a complaint by syndicate members, according to Shivasomappa Nittur, president of the Karnataka State Folklore Postgraduate and Researchers' Association.Speaking at a press conference here on Tuesday, Nittur stated that Shahjahan Mudakavi secured the position of assistant registrar at Karnataka State Folklore University in 2023 by creating fake documents. He said the Karnataka State Folklore Postgraduate and Researchers' Association fought the issue for the past 3 years. "The governor and CM Siddaramaiah recently ordered a comprehensive investigation into irregularities in various state universities, to be led by retired Justice Umesh Adiga, and the association welcomed the decision," Nittur noted.
He further said syndicate members of the university, including BM Puttaiah, Gorewale Chandrashekhar, Jyothilakshmi DP, Sahana Pinjar, Ramappa Lamani and Mohan Kumar, submitted a complaint to the CM on December 23, 2025. Based on this, the chief secretary of the govt ordered an inquiry. Consequently, the regional commissioner of Belagavi, KM Janaki, will conduct the investigation and sent notices to the complainant syndicate members to attend. "According to the complaint, it was revealed that Shahjahan Mudakavi's educational qualification was only 10+2, and the 5-year art master's diploma (visual arts) course he completed was equivalent to pre-university level and not eligible for postgraduate studies, according to Hampi Kannada University," he added.Nittur also noted that despite this, the complaint alleged that the vice-chancellors of the folklore university misled the govt and appointed an unqualified person.S Nagaraj, vice president of the association, said the misuse of a powerful govt minister's name or their intervention was evident in the matter. He urged the govt to conduct a thorough investigation and take necessary legal action against those responsible.The association's general secretary BM Dugani was also present at the event.