St Stephen’s College puts out job posting to recruit principal — after years of tussle with DU

Signed by (Retired) Reverend Paul Swarup, Bishop of Delhi, CNI, in his capacity as Chairman of the Search-cum-Screening Committee of the Supreme Council of St Stephen’s College, the notice directs applicants to the college website for details on eligibility requirements, guidelines and the application format.

The Indian Express reached out to Principal John Varghese and Chairman Swarup over calls and messages but did not receive a response in this regard.

The appointment of the principal at St Stephen’s has been a contentious issue for several years.

The move comes after Prof Varghese continued as principal well beyond the end of his five-year term in March 2021 — a continuation that DU repeatedly termed “illegal” and “non-statutory” in official correspondence with the college in 2022.

Confirming the development, DU South Campus Director Rajni Abbi told The Indian Express that a vacancy for the post of principal has now been notified by St Stephen’s.

Dean of Colleges Balram Pani said the advertisement appeared to be a procedural step following the end of the extension granted to the current principal. “It is a minority institution and following the end of the extension period of the current principal, the college must have put out an advertisement for the vacancy,” Pani said. “The file for a new appointment will come to us once it reaches the shortlisting process.”

In August 2022, Delhi University wrote to the chairperson of the college’s Supreme Council and Governing Body, stating that Prof. Varghese’s continuation as principal beyond March 2021 was illegal. Varghese had initially been appointed principal with effect from March 1, 2016.In that letter, DU cited its June 2014 notification to all constituent colleges that principals could be appointed only for a five-year term, with reappointment for another term permissible only after following a fresh due process of selection. The university said the Supreme Council of St Stephen’s had failed to follow procedures mandated under the UGC regulations.

Referring specifically to the UGC Regulations on Minimum Qualifications for Appointment of Teachers and Other Academic Staff in Universities and Colleges, 2018, DU had noted that any extension of a principal’s term requires a performance assessment by a committee comprising, among others, a nominee of the Vice-Chancellor and a nominee of the UGC Chairperson. This process, the university said, had not been followed, rendering the extension “ab-initio null and void”

However, St Stephen’s has reportedly stated that the re-appointment of Varghese was done according to the resolutions of the college’s supreme council.

The dispute unfolded alongside another tussle between DU and St Stephen’s in 2022 over admission procedures, after the university insisted that admissions to non-minority seats be conducted solely on the basis of CUET (Common University Entrance Test) scores, without interviews which the college resisted.