BANGALORE: Codava National Council president N U Nachappa Codava has demanded a CBI probe into a “fraud” committed by Sapthagiri Institute of Medical Science and Research Centre (SIMSRC) in obtaining a linguistic minority status.
The institute was started in 2011 and is managed by Sri Srinivasa Educational and Charitable Trust “that consists of members of non-Kodava and Kannada-speaking communities originally from Bangalore”, Nachappa said at a press conference here on Tuesday.
“There is no caste called Kodava Gowda. The management of the institute has inserted the word ‘Gowda’ against Kodava to obtain permission to start the college. I don’t know how the tahsildar issued them a caste certificate”, Nachappa said.
Kodavas comprise only 0.25 per cent of the state’s population and a linguistic minority institute has to earmark a fixed number of seats to students hailing from that particular minority community. “With an intake of 150 students, this institute has only one Kodava student whereas it was supposed to have 66 per cent Kodava students,” Nachappa alleged.
The Karnataka Religious and Linguistic Minority Professional Colleges Association was directed by the Department of Medical Education to “issue an immediate disclosure statement in the interest of all the students that the status of seven medical colleges as linguistic minority colleges, including SIMSRC, is under suspension.” When contacted, SIMSRC dean Dr Jayanthi V said, “Our governing council has members of the Kodava community and Kodava Gowda is a sub-caste. We cannot comment further as it is before the court.”