Kerala Governor announces “full-fledged inquiry” to probe University appointments

Kerala Governor Arif Mohammad Khan on Saturday said that he will order a full-fledged investigation into allegations of nepotism in appointments made to various posts in Universities in the state. His statement comes in the wake of a controversy in which the Governor stayed the appointment of Priya Varghese, wife of chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan’s Private Secretary and CPI (M) leader KK Ragesh, as an Associate Professor in Kannur Univeristy’s Malayalam department.

“I am going to have a full-fledged inquiry into how many such appointments have been made during the last two-three years. No nepotism will be allowed,” Governor AM Khan told mediapersons in New Delhi. Khan alleged that the Vice Chancellor of the Kannur university was behaving like the cadre member of the ruling party.

“… He behaves not like a VC, but like the ruling party cadre member,”Khan said alleging that a candidate who does not have the required teaching experience has been appointed by ignoring all the other candidates who have secured ranks 600 and 500, “because all he wants is to please the powers”. “She (Priya Varghese) is related to the secretary of the Chief Minister, therefore he is going out of his way. This is shameful…”the Governor said.

“Government’s money is nobody’s money. It is the money of the people, it can’t be thrown away. In the matters of appointments, no favoritism and nepotism will be allowed,” Khan said. Earlier on August 9, Khan had sought an explanation from the Kannur University Vice-Chancellor after a Save University campaign filed a complaint with him stating that the UGC rules were flouted while appointing Priya Varghese. The complaint alleged that Varghese did not have the necessary years of teaching experience to be appointed for the post.

Seeking an explanation into the matter, the Governor had given 10-days time to the VC of the university. Meanwhile, the Government has extended by one more year, the deputation period of Priya Varghese, who is presently working as deputy director of Kerala Basha Institute.

Varghese was an assistant professor in Kerala Varma College in Thrissur and was working at Basha Institute on deputation as Deputy Director. Earlier in 2021, a letter from Kerala Higher Education Minister R Bindu was out which recommended the reappointment of Dr Gopinath Ravindran (former VC of the university) as its Vice-Chancellor.

In the letter dated November 22, 2021, to the Governor, she had recommended Dr GopinathRavindran may be allowed to continue for another term as Vice-Chancellor and to cancel the notification dated October 27 this year appointing a Search-cum-Selection committee for identifying the person to be appointed as Vice-Chancellor. In another letter dated November 22, 2021, the higher education minister mentioned that steps have been taken to withdraw the notification inviting applications to select a Vice Chancellor for Kannur University, after which Bindu welcomed the verdict of the Lokayukta to reappointment Ravindran as the university’s vice-chancellor. (ANI)

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