'Aviation academy' cheats 200 students

A private 'aviation academy' allegedly cheated around 200 students by promising jobs in Malaysia. The 'academy' at Kodakara had lured them by offering jobs of airhostesses and ground handling and cabin crew in Malaysia once they completed their three-month course, which was started in 2010.

While three batches had completed the course through the Academy's centres at Kottayam, Kozhikode and Kodakara, the fraud came to light when the first batch flew to Malaysia and couldn't find any job there and retuned within 11 days. The institution misled the other batches with an ad carrying the photograph of the "first batch being sent to Malaysia."

A victim of the racket who had to return from Malaysia lamented that many had also lost Rs 25,000 as travelling expense.

A student of the 'academy' Amrutha had filed a case with the Kodakara police station. The police, whose inquiry showed that the institution had no approval of the panchayat, sealed its office. The man who was running the institution, Shabeer Ali, a Thrissur native, is in hiding.

When the course cost around Rs 1.5 lakh, the salary for the jobs they promised were more than Rs1 lakh a month. Most of the students were attracted by the advertisement of the academy, showing logos of five well-known airlines. The cheated include a youth who was working at the Cochin International Airport but who resigned his job to enroll for the course "for a better income".

When the news of the fraud spread, victims tried meeting the father of the accused, a formal councillor of Thrissur. A meeting with political leaders, including councilor Saramma Robson, on November 24 had given a written guarantee to the victims that their money would be refunded on November 29, but that deadline has passed without the poor students being compensated. Shabeer Ali didn't turn up at the meeting and his father, who was present, offered around only Rs 50 lakh for the 200 victims.

The victims gathered in front of Inspector General Sandhya's office yesterday to file a complaint that the offender's father himself has gone back on his own promise at the earlier meeting held.

Meanwhile, he also filed a case against the students for allegedly trying to 'manhandle' him at his house at Poothole.

Action council members Rani George, Chanjal, Ajith, Surendran, Sunil P Varghese and C Abu participated in the press meet called to explain the plight of the youngsters yesterday.