Governor appoints another V-C
Kolkata: In the backdrop of state Education minister Bratya Basu accusing Governor CV Ananda Bose of delaying the vice-chancellor (V-C) recruitment process by granting approvals in phases, the Governor, who happens to be the Chancellor of state-aided universities, has appointed another vice-chancellor on Wednesday, bringing total number of state universities in Bengal with permanent V-Cs to 11.
The Search-Cum-Selection Committee, led by former Chief Justice of India UU Lalit, had prepared a panel of three candidates for each of the 34 state universities.
These names were sent to Raj Bhavan on November 21, with Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee setting a final order of preference. On December 6, the Governor approved six V-Cs, including appointments for Presidency, Burdwan, Kalyani, Bankura, Sidho-Kanho-Birsha and Rani Rashmoni Green Universities. The second phase of approvals saw the Governor approve four more names on December 10, bringing the total number of universities with permanent V-Cs to 10. On Wednesday, the Governor approved Pranab Ghosh as the permanent vice-chancellor of Dakshin Dinajpur University. Following this approval, the state Higher Education department has issued the appointment order.
There are still 23 universities awaiting approval from the Governor.
Bratya Basu voiced criticism over the delayed process, accusing the Governor of unnecessarily prolonging the recruitment. He stated: “The Governor should approve the appointment of all university V-Cs at once.
From what I understand of the Supreme Court’s (SC) order, the entire responsibility has been entrusted to the Chief Minister. If the Governor has any dissenting opinion, he can refer it to the SC. The Court will ultimately side with the Chief Minister. Therefore, signing the approvals in instalments is both childish and a waste of time.”
It should be noted that during a SC hearing on December 9, the Court set a three-week deadline for the Governor to scrutinize and approve the remaining V-C appointments.
