Save University Campaign Committee, a whistle blower organisation fighting to keep higher education clean, has raised strong objections against changing the admission criteria for MA English in Kannur University allegedly for a Students Federation of India Kasaragod District Committee Member to enable him to get admission for the course in Government College Kasaragod.
The committee has submitted a petition to the vice chairman of the State Council of Higher Education saying the decision reportedly taken unilaterally by the Kannur University Vice Chancellor Gopinath Ravindran without consulting other affiliating universities in the State is irregular and the Vice Chancellor should be instructed to reconsider.
According to the committee chairman R.S. Sasikumar, such a decision was taken by the Vice Chancellor to bypass the academic council to allow Emmanuel, an SFI student leader of Kasaragod Government College, to pursue his studies in the same college.
Altering the admission criteria for MA English alone by not referring it to the Kerala State Higher Education Council is questionable as it will affect the future of students pursuing the course after successfully completing the Language Reduced Pattern courses, the committee said.
Kannur University VC’s stance of taking decisions that undermine the quality of PG courses by yielding to political pressures is disgraceful to the academic community, the committee alleged.
Shino P. Jose, Kannur district region president of Kerala Private College Teachers Association, said that they have decided to approach the Governor against the decision of the Kannur University. He alleged that the move is an attempt of nepotism and favouritism.
When contacted over phone, the Vice Chancellor was unavailable for comments.
