SGU V-C gets tough with panel chief and convenor

Shah will be kept away from paper setting, examination supervision, assessment and educational committees, among others, while the chairperson loses her post as in-charge of Kamrej BEd College. She was accused of dancing to Shah’s tunes. Not taking any chances, the university had filed a caveat in the court before acting on the Senate resolution.

Shah had refused to submit the admission literature despite a Syndicate resolution, leading to the tussle that only underscored the division among the statutory bodies for the better part of the last and the current academic years.

The move has come as another setback to the Shah-Hoshang Mirza group which dominated the affairs till it was reduced to minority after the appointment of the government nominees on the Senate and the Syndicate. The group had successfully campaigned for former V-C Ashwin Kapadia’s ouster.

Shah was one of the aspirants for the highest post in the university but found himself pipped by Kapadia. Being the president of teachers’ associations, he had ensured his say in the university affairs though his group lost majority in the statutory bodies.

Two strikes by teachers last year — one in response to a nation-wide call for implementation of Rastogi Commission recommendations and other for more assessment remuneration — under Shah’s leadership had delayed the academic cycle and won him condemnation.

But his post as the association chief may again come to his rescue. A delegation soon met the pro-vice-chancellor, Sharda was not present, after learning about the order and threatened agitation if action against Shah was not revoked.

The delegation felt that Shah was being victimised. Teachers said the Syndicate never formally asked the committee to hand over the literature and it could not part with it as admission processes were continuing. They claimed the Senate was misled on the issue as many committees (barring the BEd panel) in the past five years had never submitted audited accounts or literature.

And justifying his disobedience, Shah claimed the university might tamper with the literature to make out a case against him.