The Save University Campaign Committee (SUCC) has alleged irregularity behind the appointment of former Vice-Chancellor of Sree Sankaracharya University of Sanskrit Dharmaraj Adat as the ombudsman of APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University (KTU).
The organisation has accused the university of violating norms by appointing Dr. Adat without the approval of the Governor and by purportedly overlooking a panel prepared by a search committee chaired by the Principal Secretary of the Higher Education department.
KTU, however, dismissed the allegation and maintained that it adhered to the regulations laid down by the University Grants Commission (UGC).
SUCC chairman R.S. Sasikumar and secretary M. Shajarkhan submitted a petition to the Governor urging him to cancel the appointment and to assume the responsibility of appointing the ombudsman in a manner similar to the procedure adopted for university tribunals. A senior academic in the field of science and technology should ideally be chosen for the position, they felt.
They claimed the appointee did not figure in the panel created by the search committee that included former Principals and Professors. The panel had been shortlisted from among 20 applicants who responded to a government notification.
Rubbishing the claims as a ploy intended to mislead the public, KTU has stated that UGC regulations issued on April 11, 2023 stipulated that the ombudsman appointed by the university shall be a former Vice Chancellor, a retired professor with 10 years of teaching professor or a former district judge and under the age of 70. The ombudsman is appointed for a period of three years.
The rule also held the university as the authority to appoint the ombudsman and stated that the official, who served as the appellate authority for student redressal committee judgements should not be employed on a full-time basis. The university added that it had been directed by the Lok Ayukta to immediately conduct the appointment.
