An Indian-American professor has been accused of coercing his students at the University of Missouri-Kansas City to perform personal favours for him for over 24 years. Professor Ashim Mitra is one of the top researchers at the School of Pharmacy and exploited his students in what one of them described as “modern slavery”.

The Kansas City Star conducted a detailed investigation, talking to nearly a dozen students while dozens more declined to go on the record for the story. “…the professor compelled his students to act as his personal servants. They hauled equipment and bused tables at his social events. They were expected to tend his lawn, look after his dog and water the house plants, sometimes for weeks at a time when he and his wife were away.” The newspaper reported that Mitra used “hints and direct threats” to revoke the students’ visas if they didn’t comply with his demands.

Mitra’s former colleagues corroborated the students’ reports, telling The Kansas City Star “they saw the students performing menial tasks off campus or heard their complaints”. After one colleague filed a formal complaint, the university investigated by “talking to only one student”. The newspaper also published a statement from Mitra, which said, “Over the years, I have invited graduate students to my home where they have done work related to their courses of study, and at times eaten meals prepared by my wife. I have not required anyone to perform chores unrelated to their studies…”

The Star reported that this continued from the mid-1990s to at least the mid-2010s. The students Mitra put to work were all PhD students from India on student visas. In response to the report, the University of Missouri-Kansas City’s chancellor Mauli Agrawal said, “Once our fact-finding is complete, we will take any and all disciplinary action as necessary.”