Five universities, including Jamshedpur Women’s University directed to submit counter-affidavits

High Court seeks affidavits in challenge against Vice Chancellors’ appointments

Mail News Service

Ranchi, July 10: The Jharkhand High Court has mandated that the respondents in a case challenging the appointment of Vice Chancellors in five universities, including Jamshedpur Women’s University, must submit their affidavits.

The directive was issued by Justice Dr. SN Pathak, who stated that if the counter affidavits are not filed before the next hearing on July 19, a fine of Rs 5,000 will be imposed on each defaulter.

The case, brought forward by plaintiff Anjani Pandey, alleged that the appointment process for the Vice Chancellors in these universities did not adhere to the established rules.

The petition contends that the selection committee overlooked the University Grants Commission (UGC) regulations during the appointment process. It claims that individuals who did not meet the necessary qualifications were chosen for the Vice Chancellor positions, violating the prescribed rules.

The registrars and vice chancellors of the concerned universities, as well as the University Grants Commission, have been named as defendants in this case.

The petition targets multiple officials, including the Government of Jharkhand, the Government of India, the Principal Secretary of the Higher Education Department, the Director of Higher Education, the Principal Secretary to the Governor, and the Coordinator of the Search Committee.

The universities and Vice Chancellors involved are Dr. Anjila Gupta of Jamshedpur Women’s University, Prof. TN Sahu of Jharkhand State Open University, Prof. Sukhdev Bhoi of Binod Bihari Mahato Koylanchal University, Prof. Ajit Kumar Sinha of Ranchi University, and Prof. TK Sandilya of Dr. Syama Prasad Mukherjee University.

Notably, Raj Bhavan has already acted against one of the Vice Chancellors, Prof. Sukhdev Bhoi, of Binod Bihari Mahato Koylanchal University. Following an investigation into complaints against him, Governor CP Radhakrishnan removed him from his position, and a new Vice Chancellor has since been appointed.