University rapped on the knuckles

PUNE, Nov 12: The Pune Shivaji University and College Tribunal has passed severe strictures against the University of Pune describing its ac...

PUNE, Nov 12: The Pune Shivaji University and College Tribunal has passed severe strictures against the University of Pune describing its action of terminating the services of a research associate as vindictive, illegal, improper, arbitrary and against the principles of natural justice.

While setting aside the services termination order, the presiding officer of the tribunal justice P S Mane has ordered the university to pay the salary arrears to the research associate.

Dr Joseph Ouseparampil, working as research associate with the Centre for Advanced Studies in Sanskrit CASS, had filed an appeal in the tribunal against the university registrar and secretary of University Grants Commission.CASS was set up by the UGC and the Central Government in 1968. The State Government undertook the responsibilities of research activities at the centre in 1977 and subsequently started allocating grants to it in 1981-82.

The appellant was first appointed on May 1991 as a research associate for three years extendable by two more years after evaluation of progress of the appellant.In 1994, the director of CASS granted a two-more years extension as research associate to Dr Ouseparampil. The latter got a further extension of one more year by the deputy registrar and was allowed to complete the research project till November 1997.

Meanwhile, Dr Ouseparampil sent a notice to the CASS director and asked for rules and regulations by which his services were governed. The director in turn wrote a letter to Dr Ouseparampil on April 1, 1997 asking him to submit his progress report within a short notice of three days. Subsequently the services of the appellant were abruptly terminated on April 16.

In his judgement, justice Mane has observed that no fair opportunity was given to Dr Ouseparampil to show his progress and that no opportunity was given to him to show-cause as to why his services could not be terminated by giving any notice. 8220;There is a violation of principles of natural justice,8221; the judgement said.

The judgement said that the services of Dr Ouseparampil were on tenure basis and his term was to expire on November 10, 1997. Therefore, he cannot be reinstated in the service as the term of his employment has already expired. However, partly allowing the appeal filed by Dr Ouseparampil, justice Mane observed that as per Clause e of Section 61 2 of Maharashtra Universities Act, 1994 the appellant is entitled to claim emoluments for illegal termination of his services from April 16, 1997 to November 11, 1997 by way of compensation.