The Syndicate of the University of Madras has selected a former professor of the university as the second member of its Vice-Chancellor search committee even as the controversy over the election of a full-time Ph.D scholar to the committee remains unresolved.
On Friday, despite a member tabling a dissent, the Syndicate selected R. Balasubramanian, who is currently with SRM University, as the second member of the search committee. Three years ago he was in the search committee that shortlisted R. Thandavan, the current Vice-Chancellor of the university.
At the special syndicate meeting, G. Ravindran, Head of the Department of Journalism, protested against the presence of two non-members, whose constituencies had changed since their nomination. The two members had been elected to the academic council and so they should not participate in the proceedings, he said. After heated arguments with the VC whose tenure ends in January, Prof. Ravindran gave his dissent in writing.
Meanwhile, the Madras University Teachers’ Association (MUTA) felt that the election of a full-time Ph.D scholar to the search panel was in violation of the UGC rules.
Former president of MUTA Michael Aruldas asked: “We are paid salary by the Central government. So why are the UGC norms not enforced when it comes to appointments.”
Last year, in a case pertaining to the appointment of Kalyani Mathivanan as the VC of the Madurai Kamaraj University, the Madras High Court had issued a common order emphasising that the norms laid down by the UGC would apply to State universities.
In the judgment over the case of K.V. Jeyaraj vs The Chancellor of Universities dated June 26, 2014, Justice V. Ramasubramanian ruled that the selection of Vice Chancellor should be through proper identification of a panel of three to five names by a search committee through a public notification or nomination or a talent search process or in combination.
The ruling said: “The members of the above search committee shall be persons of eminence in the sphere of higher education and shall not be connected in any manner with the university concerned or its colleges. While preparing the panel, the search committee must give proper weightage to academic excellence, exposure to the higher education system in the country and abroad and adequate experience in academic and administrative governance, to be given in writing along with the panel to be submitted to the Visitor/Chancellor.”
A senior higher education official said the government had not yet received any formal papers regarding the nominations from the university.
“The government would go by the rule. If there are doubts, the government will ask the university to re-examine its selection/election processes,” the official said.
