In the wake of the recent arrest of Bharathiar University Vice-Chancellor A. Ganapathy on corruption charges, People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL) has demanded a high-level enquiry commission to investigate all appointments made in all universities and colleges in Tamil Nadu.
Stating that Ganapathy’s arrest was an indication of deep-rooted corruption in Tamil Nadu’s higher education system, R. Murali, secretary (Tamil Nadu and Puducherry), PUCL, said more than 3,000 vacancies appeared to have been filled in the last seven to eight years by accepting huge amounts of money as bribe.
In a statement issued on Monday, the organisation strongly condemned the indifferent attitude of the Tamil Nadu government towards corruption which, it said, was rampant in higher education institutions at all levels.
Stressing that Tamil Nadu had the responsibility to clean up higher education, Mr. Murali said the enquiry commission must conduct a thorough investigation and submit its report within three months.
Stating that many eligible candidates, who were denied an opportunity because of the demand for bribe, would be willing to come out with their complaints, Mr. Murali said a public hearing must be organised by the State government to receive complaints from affected persons.
Transparency
The PUCL called for more transparency in recruitment process and demanded that all appointments be made through Teachers Recruitment Board and merit list of selected candidates be made public.
The statement said the PUCL would also submit a memorandum signed by eminent academicians to the Governor soon.
