Delhi: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has alleged serious lapses in recruitment practices at Faridabad-based Al Falah University, claiming that several doctors — including two currently in NIA custody and another linked to the November Red Fort area blast — were appointed without any police verification or security clearance.
The findings form part of a money laundering investigation against the university’s promoter, Jawad Ahmad Siddiqui, and the Al Falah Charitable Trust, which oversees the institution’s educational ventures. A detailed chargesheet running into nearly 260 pages was filed before a Delhi court on Friday. The court has not yet taken cognisance of the complaint.
According to the ED, the appointments were made despite the sensitive nature of the positions and without mandatory background checks. The agency has named Siddiqui, 61, as the principal accused, alleging that illicit funds were generated by misleading students about the institution’s accreditation status and regulatory approvals.
In a statement issued the same day, the ED said it had provisionally attached land and buildings belonging to the university, valued at around Rs 140 crore, located in the Dhauj area of Faridabad.
Investigators claim that the medical college employed a number of doctors only on paper to fulfil regulatory requirements of the National Medical Commission (NMC). These faculty members were reportedly shown as working under arrangements such as “22-day punch” or “two days a week”, creating the appearance of full-time appointments during inspections.
The agency has relied on statements recorded from senior university officials under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). The Registrar of the university reportedly confirmed to investigators that probe agencies had visited the campus and acknowledged the arrests of Dr Muzammil Ganaie and Dr Shaheen Saeed, both linked to the university hospital. He also stated that no police verification was conducted at the time of their hiring.
The Vice-Chancellor and Principal, in her statement to the ED, said the appointments of Dr Ganaie, Dr Saeed and Dr Umar Nabi were made during her tenure. Dr Nabi, an assistant professor appointed in May 2024, was later identified as the alleged suicide bomber in the Red Fort area car blast. She told investigators that the appointments were recommended by the university’s human resources department and approved by Siddiqui, following which formal appointment letters were issued.
The car bomb explosion near Delhi’s Red Fort on November 10 last year left 15 people dead and several others injured. While Nabi died in the blast, Dr Ganaie and Dr Saeed were arrested by the National Investigation Agency and remain in judicial custody. Documents annexed to the ED chargesheet list Nabi as a regular doctor at the medical facility.
Siddiqui, in his statement to the ED, has denied any association with terrorist organisations. However, the agency maintains that he exercised complete control over the hiring process and the functioning of the medical college.
The chargesheet further alleges that several specialists listed on the payroll neither taught students nor treated patients and were aware of their limited, inspection-driven roles. Some doctors were allegedly issued fabricated experience certificates, while others were paid substantially lower salaries than colleagues of the same rank.
Investigators have also pointed to communications and video records suggesting that the hospital was largely non-functional weeks before an NMC inspection, with patients allegedly admitted temporarily to create a façade of normal operations.
The ED claims that Siddiqui continued to mislead regulators even during an inspection in June 2025, after which approval was granted to increase MBBS seats from 150 to 200.
According to the agency, the alleged proceeds of crime in the case amount to Rs 493.24 crore, earned through tuition and examination fees by falsely projecting NAAC accreditation and UGC recognition. Officials indicated that a supplementary chargesheet is likely, as the financial probe has so far examined records only up to March 2025.
