1.94 Crores Meant For Bengaluru College Students Siphoned Off By 2 Staffers

Two women, working as assistant clerks at Indian Institute of Science (IISc) in Bengaluru and one of their boyfriens have been arrested for allegedly misappropriating Rs 1.94 crore that was allocated for student foreign travel grants.

The arrested accused have been identified as V Soundarya (25), a resident of Yeshwanthpur, and R Deepika (25), of Hesaraghatta, both working as assistant clerks in the IISc Registrar's office. Police have also detained Sachin Rao (25), Deepika's boyfriend, for allegedly assisting in the fraud.

According to police, between June 2024 and October 2025, the staffers fabricated documents and forged approval papers to divert funds meant for students into bank accounts belonging to their relatives and acquaintances. The scam came to light after IISc officials observed an unusually high number of travel grant disbursements, including to former students who had already graduated.

Suspecting irregularities, the Registrar ordered an internal audit, which exposed large-scale manipulation of student records. The audit revealed that Soundarya and Deepika had created fake travel grant applications by using the names of current and former students while substituting the account details with those of their contacts. One of the fraudulent grants was even sanctioned in the name of Deepika's boyfriend, Sachin Rao.

Investigators found that a portion of the embezzled money was used by Deepika to purchase a plot of land in Sachin's name, gold jewellery, and a car. Soundarya is also said to have bought property and valuables in her relatives' names. Police said both women led a lavish lifestyle using the siphoned funds.

During the probe, police seized assets worth around Rs 1 crore, including property documents valued at Rs 80 lakh, gold ornaments worth Rs 15 lakh, Rs 11 lakh in cash, and a car.

Soundarya and Deepika have been remanded to judicial custody, while Sachin Rao remains in police custody for further investigation.