Varsity to withdraws grace marks

MUMBAI, MARCH 31: After a three hour meeting, the Board of Examinations BoE of the University of Mumbai today agreed to withdraw the ei...

MUMBAI, MARCH 31: After a three hour meeting, the Board of Examinations BoE of the University of Mumbai today agreed to withdraw the eight grace marks awarded to all final year MBBS students, subject to the approval of the chancellor. Governor PC Alexander8217;s seal of approval now seems a formality as it was he himself who had issued a show-cause notice to the vice-chancellor five days ago, terming the university8217;s decision on grace marks as 8220;illegal and beyond its powers.8221;

Today8217;s BoE meeting, called specifically to discuss the MBBS issue following the show-cause notice, was attended by 13 of the 19 Board members. Though most of the proceedings were shrouded in secrecy, it was learnt that at least two of the Board members present raised the fact that they had been mislead by the University. Their contention was that they had not been informed about the use of Ordinance 234. Dr Deshmukh8217;s chief defence to the chancellor 8212; which was later rejected 8212; was that the university had the power to amend theresults under Ordinance 234.

Board members are also believed to have stated that no papers had been placed on time before them, and that they were not appraised of all the facts of the case. Other members termed the whole incident as 8220;unfortunate8221; for the university.

Pro-Vice Chancellor Dr Naresh Chandra said that the Board decision was taken unanimously and that the university would 8220;abide by the decision taken by the Chancellor.8221;

Questioned about the 64 students who passed because of the vice-chancellor8217;s decision to grant grace marks, Dr Chandra said that their position was also discussed at the meeting and if need be, they would be given a chance to get their papers re-evaluated and also to appear for re-examination. It is also learnt that the university might also postpone the examinations, scheduled at present for April 12.

The Pro V-C revealed that in addition to informing him of the outcome of today8217;s meeting, a reply will also be sent to the showcause notice issued to the vice-chancellorby the chancellor. The reply to the showcause notice will be sent by the vice-chancellor personally, as the notice was not addressed to the BoE, a board member said.

Following the BoE meeting, student bodies have reiterated their demand for the vice-chancellor8217;s resignation. The National Students8217; Union of India NSUI held a demonstration at the university8217;s Fort campus this morning, demanding Dr Deshmukh8217;s resignation. NSUI president Rahul Khedekar has also stated that the students should be given reasonable time to apply for revaluation and to prepare for reexamination. Before the meeting, the NSUI also submitted a memorandum asking the board members to take a judicious impartial decision8217; regarding the grace marks.

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Dhiraj Borikar, from Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad ABVP, stated that the vice-chancellor should resign on moral grounds. The decision to grant eight grace marks reeked of vested interests, he said.

The vice-chancellor has also accepted the resignation of the dean of the faculty ofmedicine, her husband, Dr S N Deshmukh. Dr Deshmukh resigned last Thursday protesting against the vilification8217; campaign by The Indian Express group of publications.