Ex-joint director accused of using MU guest house for a year without payment

Mangaluru: A Right to Information (RTI) request revealed a controversy involving a former joint director of the Department of Collegiate Education, Mangaluru division. The person, Ramegowda, allegedly used Mangalore University's Kaveri Guest House as his residence for over a year. While Ramegowda retired last month, questions remain about unpaid bills to MU.
In response to the allegation, Ramegowda said he sent a letter to MU to request a concession and offer the room rent as per govt rates applicable to him. But even after a month, MU has not replied to his letter.
According to RTI information available (TOI has a copy of it), Ramegowda stayed at Kaveri Guest House, one of the premier guest houses of MU, from July 3, 2023, to Dec 2024. He stayed in room No. 6 for a total of 362 days. As per the rate card, MU charges Rs 1,000 per day as the air-conditioned room rental. Ramegowda also stayed at the facility until his retirement.
A senior professor and a principal of a first-grade college questioned, "The joint director is facing scrutiny for his stay at the university's guest house. For nearly two years, he occupied the facility without payment, even as the university grapples with financial difficulties. This extended stay resulted in substantial financial losses for the institution. The MU must answer why the payment was not recovered from him."
When contacted, Ramegowda said he wrote to MU regarding his stay at the Kaveri Guest House. "I was permitted by the vice-chancellor and registrar to stay there during the days of the university meetings/events I needed to attend officially. Additionally, I stayed for some other 195 days when rooms were available. For the additional days, I, as a govt official, need to pay a rate of Rs 350 per day, totalling Rs 68,250," he said.
"I am the disbursement officer for all university grants and declared that I will not receive any honorarium for duties performed as a member of the academic board/syndicate or any committee/subcommittee or as a govt appointee since Sept 2023. I actively participated in all related meetings and other official activities. Considering these points, I requested a concession on the amount of Rs 68,250 and asked for the final payable amount to be determined and for the bank account number to be provided for payment," he added.
He added, "However, my letter sent on Feb 7, weeks before retirement, has not received any response from MU to date. I also stayed at the guest house during election duty, I was assigned. The cost of the same should be borne by the district administration." He further stated that his stay at the guest house is blown out of proportion to cover other irregularities at MU, which he opposed/questioned during his tenure as joint director.
PL Dharma, vice-chancellor, and Raju K Mogaveera, registrar of MU, were not available for comments.