Calicut V-C appointment may face legal hurdles

The appointment of a new Vice-Chancellor (V-C) for the University of Calicut could face legal hurdles as a section of the Senate members affiliated to the CPI(M) are planning to approach the High Court against the recent constitution of the search-cum-selection committee by Governor and Chancellor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar.

One of the Senate members told The Hindu on Wednesday that legal options were being explored to challenge the Chancellor’s action. Mr. Arlekar recently nominated Eluvathingal D. Jemmis, National Science Chair professor, Department of lnorganic and Physical Chemistry, Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru, as the Chancellor’s nominee and Ravindra D. Kulkarni, V-C, University of Mumbai, as the nominee of the University Grants Commission, soon after the Senate elected A. Sabu, member secretary, Kerala State Council for Science, Technology, and Environment, as its nominee to the committee.

Though Mr. Sabu subsequently informed the university authorities that he was not interested in taking up the job, the Chancellor notified the formation of the committee ahead of this. Thereafter, Raj Bhavan also called for applications for selecting the V-C.

The pro-Left members pointed out that it was the Principal Secretary, Higher Education, who should have issued the notification for the appointment of the new V-C after a meeting of the search-cum-selection committee.

The Chancellor issuing a notification was against precedents. Also, since the Senate nominee has declined to take up the job, that post remained vacant. Without the Senate nominee, the committee would be legally invalid. One of the pro-Left members in the Senate or Syndicate could move the High Court citing these points, they added.

This is not the first time that the Senate nominee of the university is declining to take up the job. Dharmaraj Adat, who was earlier chosen by the Senate for the post in August, too had quit the post in a similar manner.

Syndicate members aligned with the United Democratic Front had claimed this could be a strategy to prolong the appointment process since it is not possible to pick a new V-C without a Senate nominee on the panel.

However, this time, the Chancellor quickly constituted the search committee and notified it before his office was informed of Mr. Sabu’s decision.

The Chancellor’s office is of the view that since Mr. Sabu’s “resignation” came after the notification, it need not be considered. The pro-Left members, however, said that there was not much of a delay in informing Raj Bhavan about the decision.