Garhwal Post Bureau
Nainital, 15 Apr: The Uttarakhand High Court today upheld the appointment of the Vice-Chancellor (VC) of Hemvati Nandan Bahuguna Garhwal University, Srinagar, giving significant relief to the incumbent. A public interest litigation (PIL) challenging the appointment was dismissed after the Division Bench led by Chief Justice Manoj Kumar Gupta and also comprising Justice Subhash Upadhyay found the appointment to be in accordance with University Grants Commission (UGC) regulations and the Central Universities Act.
It may be recalled that the PIL had been filed by Professor Naveen Prakash Nautiyal, who had argued that the appointment violated provisions of the Central Universities Act, 2009, and the UGC Regulations, 2018, which prescribe minimum qualifications and standards for the appointment of teachers and academic staff. He had contended that the appointment of Professor Prakash Singh as Vice-Chancellor was arbitrary and illegal and had claimed that this was undermining the sanctity of merit-based appointments and violating Articles 14 and 16 of the Constitution.
The petitioner, through his legal counsel, had also argued that the appointment was contrary to Regulation 7.3 of the UGC Regulations, 2018, which requires a minimum of ten years’ experience as a professor in a university. He argued that Singh’s experience as a Chair Professor at the Indian Institute of Public Administration could not be considered equivalent to university professorship, as IIPA is neither a university nor governed by UGC norms. He further pointed out that the advertisement issued by the Ministry of Education had clearly stipulated eligibility as ten years of service as a professor in a university, leaving no scope for equivalence or substitution.
The High Court, however, after examining the submissions and relevant provisions, held that the appointment was valid under UGC rules and the Central Universities Act and dismissed the petition.
