Setback for Kerala government; High Court quashes KUFOS Vice Chancellor Dr Riji John's Appointment
The Kerala High Court did not accept the government's plea to stay the order.
FollowIn a major vindication of Kerala Governor Arif Mohammad Khan's stance on the matter, the Kerala High Court on Monday quashed a key appointment made by the Pinarayi Vijayan government. The court cancelled the appointment of the Vice-Chancellor of Kerala University of Fisheries and Ocean Studies (KUFOS), Dr Riji John.Â
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The High Court did not accept the government's plea to stay the order. The court rejected Dr Riji John's demand that the order to vacate the post of VC should be stayed for 10 days and that he should be given an opportunity to approach the Supreme Court. A bench of Chief Justice Manikumar and Justice Shaji P Chali made it clear that because the appointment was found to be wrong for various reasons, such a stay could not be granted.
The court said that the appointment was against the UGC regulations considering that the selection committee sent only one name for the post. The selection committee should be constituted as per UGC rules. The court asked the Governor, who is also the chancellor, to find a new vice-chancellor.Â
The state government and Riji John had contended that the University of Fisheries is an Agricultural University and that UGC rules were not applicable to it and that the court cannot make appointments in accordance with the rules of the University contrary to the Central Act.
John was appointed as the Vice-Chancellor in January 2021 after a three-member search committee recommended his name. But, soon after the appointment, another candidate for the post, KK Vijayan, filed a complaint with the High Court. Disputing his appointment, Vijayan alleged that John was made Vice-Chancellor by disregarding UGC regulations. He claimed that the search committee forwarded only one name rather than the list of candidates to Governor Arif Mohammed Khan.
The UGC regulations mandate the selection of Vice Chancellor should be through proper identification of a panel of 3-5 names by the committee.
But Governor Arif Mohammad Khan submitted before the High Court that there was nothing illegal in the appointment of Dr Riji John. "The three-member search committee unanimously recommended Riji John's name for the KUFOS VC post. I have approved their proposal," the Governor said in his statement.
Last month, the Supreme Court set aside the appointment of the Vice Chancellor of APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University, Thiruvananthapuram, because the search committee was not properly constituted and that only a single name was sent to the Governor.
Governor Khan, who is at loggerheads with the Kerala government, latched on to this and sent show-cause notices to Vice-Chancellors of ten universities, including John.
All Vice-Chancellors approached the High Court, and the Court asked the Governor not to take any action till the V-Cs' petitions were disposed of. The case is posted for November 17. But with the ruling by the Court disposing of a petition filed by the state government, John will now have to resign from the post of Vice-Chancellor.
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