The stoic silence of members on issues pertaining to staff, syllabus and students stood out as the highlight of the Academic Council meeting of Madurai Kamaraj University held on Thursday.
Barring one member, who repeatedly demanded discussion through adjournment motions, almost all others remained silent spectators.
The nearly three-hour-long meeting, which discussed adjournment motions and items of the prepared agenda, gave an impression that the proceedings were only between Vice-Chancellor Kalyani Mathivanan and senior member S. Vivekanandan. When she found that only one member was talking on every issue as “spokesperson,” the VC asked whether any other member was willing to speak. But there was no response or participation in the discussion. Totally, 109 members signed the attendance at the meeting and each of them was entitled to Rs.1,200 as allowance. While three of them pitched in for just a few minutes, the rest confined to moving the resolutions on syllabus and other university issues without participating in debate.
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Objections on filling up of teaching posts by the VC when the Supreme Court is still hearing her case; assault on Save MKU Coalition convenor; errors in preparing examiners’ list on seniority basis of faculty; and ignoring senior faculty members while constituting the research committee were some of the issues raised. “Whistle-blowers are being attacked. Who will come forward and protest in this suffocating environment? By not following the procedures, the Academic Council is being taken for granted,” Mr. Vivekanandan accused.
Dr. Mathivanan said that she would not be cowed down by the loud voice of the member and if there was any problem he could take it up with the Supreme Court. Syndicate members, who came up with explanations for the issues raised by Mr. Vivekanandan, admitted that there were errors in the appointment of examiners.