The Professors’ Forum of Madras University (PFMU), an association of the faculty of University of Madras, has written to Chief Minister M.K. Stalin, seeking his intervention to rectify alleged irregularities during the tenure of former Vice-Chancellor S. Gowri.
Forum general secretary S.S. Sundaram alleged that Prof. Gowri undermined the Syndicate, the Senate and the Academic Council, which were the decision-making bodies of the university.
The Madras High Court recently expressed dissatisfaction over the removal of a member from the Academic Council and termed it “illegal and mala fide”. He alleged that this was an example of Prof. Gowri’s “autocratic and undemocratic” conduct.
Contending that affiliated colleges of the university were subjected to “unnecessary inspections” in the last three years, the letter said faculty from engineering institutions such as Anna University and IIT Madras were appointed in the committees to inspect arts and science colleges, which are governed by different regulations than that of the former two institutions.
Delays in granting qualification approval for the faculty of affiliated colleges, delay in granting membership for various colleges to the Academic Council, irregular changing of the heads of departments in the university, mismanagement of the Career Advancement Scheme for the faculty, and neglect of administrative staff were some of the other allegations made by the forum.
