Former Higher Education Minister and DMK deputy general secretary K. Ponmudi on Monday urged Tamil Nadu Governor Banwarilal Purohit to withdraw the extension of tenure of vice-chancellors of Bharathidasan and Periyar Universities.
In a statement in Chennai. he said it had set an unhealthy precedent since their tenure was over and farewell had been conducted. “The extension will put an end to selection of vice-chancellor in transparent manner,” he said. [In 2011 during the DMK regime, Anna University Vice-chancellor P Mannar Jawahar was given a year's extension in tenure by the Governor.]
Mr Ponmudi wanted to know the reason behind giving them extension since a selection committee had already been constituted to find new vice-chancellor candidates.
“Did the AIADMK government place any request before the Governor for their extension? The sudden announcement from the Raj Bhavan has caused unrest among the teachers and educationists,” he said.
Wondering whether the quality of higher education could be strengthened by giving them extension, Mr Ponmudi said the decision of the Governor had pained everyone since he had always reiterated transparency and denied corruption.
