Vision IAS Bhopal Centre Shuts Without Notice; 'To-Let' Board Greets Students

Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): Students enrolled at the Bhopal centre of VisionIAS, one of India's leading coaching institutes for UPSC Civil Services preparation, have alleged that the institute abruptly shut its centre without any prior notice, leaving their courses midway and lakhs of rupees in fees at stake.

The controversy surfaced after students returned to the centre expecting classes to resume following a week-long suspension, only to find a 'To-Let' board displayed outside the building.

The students have lodged a written complaint with the police, demanding either the immediate resumption of offline classes or a full refund of their fees.

Earlier, coaching was closed for maintenance

According to the students, the institute informed them on July 1 that the Bhopal centre was being temporarily closed for electrical maintenance and that classes would resume on July 7. However, when students returned expecting classes to restart, they found a 'To-Let' board hanging outside the building instead of the coaching centre reopening.

The phone number mentioned on the board belonged to the building owner. Students said that when they contacted him, he informed them that VisionIAS had vacated the premises and left Bhopal. They further claimed that no staff members were present at the centre and that repeated calls to the Bhopal management went unanswered. The institute also did not issue any official announcement regarding the closure.

Building owner alleges rent, electricity dues

The building owner, Kamlesh Tiwari, told Free Press that the institute had vacated the premises after failing to clear dues. According to him, VisionIAS owed Rs 40-45 lakh in rent, around Rs 4.5 lakh in electricity bills and Rs 1-1.5 lakh in water bills. "From January they have stopped giving rent; we have now given them the notice," Tiwari said.

More than 50 students enrolled in one batch

A single batch of VisionIAS has more than 50 students, each of whom has paid more than Rs 1.5 lakh in fees. One of the complainants, Devyansh, said he had enrolled at the Bhopal centre in October last year, paying nearly Rs 1.5 lakh for the offline UPSC programme.

He said the foundation course had been completed, while some classes were conducted through recorded lectures from the Delhi centre. Offline classes, he alleged, had already been limited, with only around 14 days of classroom teaching held since January. "We were told that the closure was temporary due to a fire safety audit and classes would resume on July 7. But when we returned, there was a 'To-Let' board outside. That was when we realised something was wrong," he said.

Students further alleged that they received communication offering them the option of shifting to online classes or seeking a refund after a 25% deduction, which the coaching cited as maintenance charges. Students have objected to the proposal, claiming that the offline programme costs substantially more than the online course.

Students lodge police complaint

A few students have lodged a complaint at the Govindpura police station. In their complaint, students alleged that the institute closed the centre without informing enrolled candidates, stopped responding to calls and later offered only online classes or a partial refund. The complainants have demanded that VisionIAS either restart offline classes in Bhopal or refund the entire fee without deductions.

They have also sought legal action, alleging that the sudden closure has caused financial loss and disrupted the preparation of several UPSC aspirants. The complaint, signed by multiple students, states that they had enrolled specifically for classroom coaching in Bhopal and would not have opted for the course had they known the centre would be shut down.

No response from management

When contacted, the VisionIAS administration did not respond to repeated phone calls. Speaking to Free Press, faculty member Anubhav Sharma said he was unaware of the reasons behind the closure. He stated that he was only a faculty member and had not been informed of any decision by the management. According to him, the institute has been temporarily closed and is expected to reopen, though he could not provide any timeline or further details.