Anand Kumar, founder of Super 30 faces heat again after a Public Interest Litigation(PIL) was filed against him by four IIT Guwahati students just a few months before the release of his biopic.

What is the Super 30 controversy?

According to The Hindu, the Guwahati High Court has issued a notice to Kumar, asking him to reply to the allegations which have been raised against him by the IIT students.

Reportedly, according to the petition, in 2018 as well, Anand Kumar has claimed that 26 out of 30 students from the Super 30 group have cleared the IIT exams. The petitioners have been asking Kumar to disclose the names of the students who have qualified.

Amit Goyal, the advocate on record for the petitioners, while speaking to The Logical Indian said, “All we want is him to reveal the names of the students that have entered IITs. If what he says is true, he should come out and disclose the names, simply saying will not do.”

In an exclusive interview with The Logical Indian, Anand Kumar denied the allegations and said “People are getting jealous because a movie is being made on me and they are thus falsely accusing me. I have never taught any student from Guwahati and neither have I taken any grants from Assam government or for that matter from any government. So, why has the PIL been filed against me? It is a simple attack to defame me.”

What is Super 30?

Super 30 was set up in 2002 in Patna by Anand Kumar, a mathematician, under the banner ‘Ramanujam School of Mathematics’. The organisation provides assistance to the economically backward classes for Joint Entrance Examination (JEE), entrance examination required to get into IITs.

The organisation shortlists the candidates for the institute through an examination and charges only an application fee of Rs.60. The selected students are given free coaching for JEE for a year. Super 30 also gives these students access to free food and lodging.

The institute also got recognised by Limca Book of Records for his work in 2009. The organisation made headlines when in 2008 it recorded a 100% success rate at IIT JEE.  

Past Controversies

Recently in July, Abhyanand, the former DGP of Patna, accused Anand Kumar of ignoring him in his upcoming biopic. While speaking to DNA he said, “I don’t know what’s there in the film. Even if it is based on the biography written by Anand, it can’t be a biopic. I’m aware of the window between 1992-2008 in his life. I have read the book partly, but in my opinion, a lot of it is just fiction. He cannot deny my presence and contribution to Super 30. If he can claim it was solely his thought, I can also say it was my brainchild. It makes little difference to anyone as long as it’s a thought to help the society. But that hasn’t happened.”

According to India Today, a student of Super 30 accused Anand Kumar of allegedly releasing an incorrect number of students who got admitted into IIT from his institution. Anand Kumar was also accused to have admitted students in Ramanujam classes by asking Rs.33, 000 as fee and misled the students by informing them that selection for Super 30 would be based on the performance in Ramanujam classes.

He has also said that because of Kumar’s wrong projections, a large number of students from the Northeast as well as other parts of the country approach him with the faith that he will help them in qualifying for the examination.

However, upon inquiry, the petitioners found that after 2008, Kumar has stopped running his Super 30 classes.

According to Danik Jagaran, Anand Kumar allegedly has properties worth Rs.3 crore acquired in just 4 years, all of which have been registered under the name of his family members.

What do the students say?

Even after being surrounded by controversies, few of the students of Super 30 have come out openly to defend their alma mater. They openly criticised the media and dismissed the allegations.

The Logical Indian Take

Anand Kumar and his Super 30 is finding itself in controversies after the announcement of the biopic in 2016. The controversies have now started gaining momentum just a few months before the release of the film. Even with a number of allegations against him, he is still a hope for a lot of students. Allegations as such without any grounds seem to be just empty controversies.

Anand Kumar and Super 30, as an organisation, can only be looked down upon if these allegations are found true.  The organisation is a respectful one and allegations like such with nothing to back them up seem to be a direct attack to defame the organisation.

Also Read: Super30 Founder Anand Kumar Honoured In Canada By The Legislature of British Columbia