Governor Arif Mohammed Khan appointed K.K. Geethakumary, professor, Department of Sanskrit, Calicut University, as interim Vice-Chancellor of the Sree Sankaracharya University of Sanskrit on Thursday.
The order issued by Mr. Khan in his capacity as Chancellor of the university came shortly after the Kerala High Court rejected a plea to stay the order that had invalidated the appointment of the incumbent Vice-Chancellor M.V. Narayanan.
Notably, Prof. Geethakumary, along with Prof. Narayanan and at least five others, figured on the shortlist that had been prepared for appointment to the post of Vice-Chancellor. However, the search-cum-selection committee had submitted only his name to the Chancellor. The violation of University Grants Commission (UGC) norms has ultimately led to his ouster from the post.
Dr. Geethakumary will exercise the powers and perform the duties of the Vice-Chancellor until an appointment is made to the post on a regular basis, the Raj Bhavan notification read.
Resignation rejected
Meanwhile, the Governor has rejected the resignation tendered by Sree Narayana Guru Open University Vice-Chancellor P.M. Mubarak Pasha a month ago. Prof. Pasha had submitted the resignation letter on February 22, two days prior to the hearings arranged for four Vice-Chancellors, including him, to determine the legality of their appointments. In his reply, the Governor wrote “it would be detrimental to the justice if his resignation is accepted as requested by him.”
During the hearing, the UGC had offered to clarify on the legal validity of the appointments of Prof. Pasha and Digital University Kerala Vice-Chancellor Saji Gopinath.
A decision (on Prof. Pasha’s resignation) will be taken after receiving the UGC clarification, the Governor has stated.
