Calcutta HC upholds Governor’s order to appoint 11 V-Cs
The High Court also said that the state government would have to pay the salary and other benefits to the temporary vice-chancellors appointed by the Governor.
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The petitioner had alleged that contrary to the proposal given by the higher education minister, the chancellor had made a series of appointments of vice-chancellors without any consultation with him.
The Calcutta High Court upheld West Bengal Governor C V Ananda Bose’s decision to appoint temporary vice-chancellors in 11 universities of the state in his capacity as the ex-officio chancellor of these institutions.
Hearing the case on Wednesday, a division bench of Chief Justice T S Sivagnanam and Justice Ajay Kumar Gupta said when the final decision is with the Governor, who is the appointing authority of the vice-chancellors, the manner, mode or method of consultation has to be left with him and the consultee cannot dictate terms to the chancellor that the consultation has to be in a particular mode or methodology.
The High Court also said that the state government would have to pay the salary and other benefits to the temporary vice-chancellors appointed by the Governor.
In his capacity as the Chancellor of all state universities, Governor Bose had on June 1 had appointed interim V-Cs to 11 universities after the incumbents completed their extended tenures. On June 5, a public interest litigation was filed in the Calcutta High Court against the Governor’s decision to appoint a temporary vice-chancellors.
It was claimed by the petitioner and also the state government that the orders appointing the vice-chancellors to the universities were illegal as the higher education department was not consulted by Governor C V Ananda Bose before giving such appointments.
The petitioner had alleged that contrary to the proposal given by the higher education minister, the chancellor had made a series of appointments of vice-chancellors without any consultation with him.
The 11 universities where temporary vice-chancellors were Jadavpur University, Calcutta University, Kalyani University, Burdwan University, Sanskrit University, Sidho-Kanho-Birsa University, Kazi Nazrul University, Bankura University, Babasaheb Ambedkar Education University, Diamond Harbor Women’s University and Dakshin Dinajpur University.
After the Governor’s office had issued a list of the interim VCs , West Bengal Education Minister Bratya Basu had called the Raj Bhavan’s decision “unilateral” and one that “violates the law”. “We won’t recognise them as officiating V-Cs. The Chancellor is appointing interim V-Cs without holding any consultation with the department to establish his control over campuses,” he had said. The minister had also said that as the state government does not recognise the appointments, the temporary vice-chancellors “will not be paid”. – With PTI inputs
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