Anna University VC appointment: Madras HC upholds appointment of member in search committee

By PTI  |   Published: 20th September 2017 11:30 PM  |  

Last Updated: 20th September 2017 11:30 PM   

Anna University Building, Guindy (File | EPS)

CHENNAI: The Madras High Court today upheld the appointment of Anantha Padmanabhan as a member of the search committee to select the vice chancellor of Anna University.

"We find no illegality in the appointment of Anantha Padmanabhan as a member of the search committee," the first bench of Chief Justice Indira Banerjee and Justice M Sundar said as it dismissed the petition by Students Federation of India (SFI) assailing his inclusion.

Yesterday the court was informed by state Advocate General Vijay Narayan that former Chief Justice of India R M Lodha, who heads the search committee, has decided to quit, as inclusion of Padmanabhan in the committee has been assailed in the court.

The court declined to accept the contentions of the counsel for SFI that Padmanabhan was holding the post of Professor of Eminence in the university when he was nominated as a committee member, which is against the bye-laws.

He is also a research supervisor in the university, they contended.

Yesterday the court had raised doubts about the authenticity of the resignation letter of Padmanabhan, as it found two such letters in the case documents, one with an official stamp and other on a plain paper.

The Advocate General then informed the court that he will produce all the records on the resignation of Padmanabhan as the Professor of Eminence in the university.

When the PIL was taken up for hearing today, the advocate general produced the original copies of the letter.

The court said he has resigned from the post of Professor of Eminence before being nominated to the search committee.

The research supervisor post is one without any remuneration, the bench said.