Finance minister Radhakrishan Kishore called on Governor Santosh Kumar Gangwar on Tuesday and demanded the immediate removal of vice-chancellor of Nilamber Piramber University Dinesh Kumar Singh , who is under scrutiny over allegations of financial irregularities in the institution.
“The possibility that Dinesh Kumar Singh might destroy evidence while continuing to hold the office of Vice-Chancellor cannot be ruled out. The development comes a week after the Governor, chancellor of the state universities, confiscated Singh’s financial and administrative powers after audit reports suggested wrongdoing. In his submission, Kishore recalled that his intervention prompted the Lok Bhavan to start a probe into the allegations against the V-C.
Therefore, Dinesh Kumar Singh should be removed from the post of Vice-Chancellor with immediate effect to ensure that evidence regarding the allegations against him is not tampered with,” the minister said in his letter.
In his written submission the Congress leader said the immediate removal of Singh was required to ensure that evidence regarding the allegations against him was not tampered with.
The audit report submitted by the Finance Department revealed a case of embezzlement/misappropriation of funds amounting to crores of rupees,” he said. Acting upon my letters, you ordered an inquiry by the Audit Directorate of the Finance Department, Government of Jharkhand. “The report details instances of irregular appointments and repeated tenure extensions involving the incumbent Vice-Chancellor. However, the funds were spent without obtaining approval from the Governor’s Secretariat. In light of the finance department’s audit report, the Governor suspended the financial and administrative powers of the V-C until further orders. As per media reports, within five hours of the decision taken at Lok Bhawan to curtail the financial and administrative powers of Singh, the registrar was transferred and a replacement was appointed.
“It is submitted that I had met you and submitted two letters—dated 28.03.2025 and 31.12.2025, respectively—requesting a high-level inquiry into the financial corruption prevailing at Nilamber-Pitamber University. The minister further stated that, according to the audit report, irregular payments totaling approximately ₹ 2.50 crore were made under the head of conducting exam-related activities. A budget of ₹ 79,35,000 was proposed for the third convocation ceremony of Nilamber-Pitamber University, held in October 2025. An allocation of ₹ 80 lakh received in the 2021-22 financial year for the purchase of digital boards was kept in a PL (Personal Ledger) account.
The Vice-Chancellor unilaterally spent this amount without obtaining re-validation, a practice that violates financial management norms,” the minister said.
