Leader of the Opposition in the Assam Legislative Assembly and senior Congress leader Debabrata Saikia has submitted a detailed memorandum to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), asking for a full investigation into what he described as serious financial and administrative irregularities at Tezpur University. Saikia submitted the complaint to the Anti-Corruption Branch of the CBI in Guwahati on Monday, saying that these matters concern the use of public money and therefore needed independent verification.
Saikia said he is not accusing any specific individual of guilt, but he stressed that complaints have been coming from many different corners of the university, including students, teachers, staff bodies and through various documents and RTI replies. According to Saikia, these complaints cover a number of sensitive issues, including alleged manipulation of tenders, questionable procurement processes, suspected misuse of internal university funds, irregular appointments and allegations related to retirement benefits of employees. He said that such serious matters should be examined by an independent agency and that only a proper inquiry by the CBI can clear doubts and protect public funds.
In the memorandum, Saikia pointed out that Tezpur University has gone through long internal disturbance and unrest. He said that many questions have been raised about procurement of services, equipment and books, and also about appointment of officers and administrative decisions taken over the last several years. He added that some of these issues were officially communicated through a Right to Information reply dated November 19, 2025, where the university stated that important documents relating to the appointment and educational qualifications of the former Vice-Chancellor Prof. Shambhu Nath Singh were “not available in the office”. 
Saikia referred to several examples that, in his view, require a detailed investigation. One such example is the security services tender, where it is alleged that the process was influenced in favour of a private company, M/s GDX Security Solutions Pvt. Ltd., leading to increased cost to the university and complaints of financial exploitation of security guards. Saikia said that this matter has also led to allegations of a cash-for-job type practice and therefore deserved examination.
Another allegation mentioned in the memorandum is the purchase of diesel worth around ₹11.48 lakh from a vendor which, according to the documents submitted, was not empanelled at that time. The memorandum says that this was done even though the regular tender process was already active, which raised questions about the urgency and approval of such purchases.
Saikia said that several procurement-related irregularities appear repeatedly in many documents, including the purchase of computers, furniture, water coolers, and various equipment under the Higher Education Financing Agency (HEFA) funds. For example, the university is alleged to have procured 37 MacBook computers worth around ₹83 lakh through a special certificate rather than through normal competitive purchase, even though such computers were easily available in the market. There are allegations that some units were personally given to officers, which again creates suspicion and requires proper inquiry.
The memorandum also mentions that furniture worth around ₹14 crore was purchased with very strict specifications which possibly favoured a particular brand, and later the furniture supplied was reportedly below the required specifications.
Another example cited is the procurement of water coolers and purifiers costing more than ₹1 lakh per unit, which the memorandum says was much higher than normal market prices. There are also references to a high mast flag pole project, where the inauguration reportedly took place just three days after opening of bids, raising doubts about whether the contract had been pre-decided and whether tender rules were fully followed.
The memorandum further lists questions about scrap disposal, book procurement worth several crores, and building projects under HEFA funds. It says that many of these decisions involved restrictive tender conditions or unusual approvals, and therefore must be examined through official records. Saikia said that such matters are not ordinary administrative differences, because they involve the use of public money and affect the functioning of a national university.
In addition to procurement matters, Saikia also raised administrative concerns, including allegations about irregular appointments, unusual extensions of service, contract postings with high salaries, and questions related to quarter allotment for employees. He said that several faculty and employees have objected to these decisions and that many issues were also raised inside the university.
The memorandum also highlights incidents relating to retirement benefits of a former Executive Engineer whose pension and gratuity have reportedly been withheld. Saikia said that such actions create fear and hardship for employees and therefore must be reviewed.
He also mentioned that students and hostel boarders have been complaining about poor hostel conditions, water problems and lack of maintenance. According to the memorandum, several hostels have broken facilities and unhygienic conditions, and students have repeatedly raised these matters with the administration.
Saikia noted that the Ministry of Education had already written on December 6, 2025, assuring that the former Vice-Chancellor would no longer handle university administration and that an inquiry would be started. He said that even this development showed that the issues were serious enough to draw the attention of the Union Government.
The memorandum calls upon the CBI to examine tender documents, procurement records and financial transactions of the last several years, verify the record-keeping of Vice-Chancellor appointment papers, and ensure that a proper inquiry is done according to law. Saikia said that this was necessary not only to understand what happened in the past, but also to restore trust among students, teachers and employees.
“Given the scale of funds and the importance of Tezpur University, there should be a full and fair investigation,” Saikia said in the memorandum, adding that an independent probe was necessary to bring transparency. He requested that the investigation be time-bound and impartial, and that all relevant documents should be examined by the agency.
Saikia submitted the memorandum jointly with Congress MLA Nurul Huda and MLA Sibamoni Bora, and also attached documents, annexures and scanned copies on a pen drive for the CBI to study. The Congress leader said that he hoped the matter would be taken up urgently in the interest of public accountability and institutional credibility.
