Education minister Bratya Basu on Monday accused Bengal governor C.V. Ananda Bose of “disregarding the Supreme Court, UGC and the state government” while unilaterally appointing officiating vice-chancellors in state-aided universities.
The minister was speaking a day after the governor, ex-officio chancellor of state-aided universities, announced the names of officiating VCs for 16 universities without consulting the government.
“The best jester from the court of Raja Krishnachandra has been sent as the governor.... The previous governor (Jagdeep Dhakhar) had not behaved like this, like the mysterious James Bond,” said Basu.
“On some occasions, a police officer is being appointed. On another occasion, a judge is being engaged. Anyone can become a VC. Even the head of a temple committee can become a VC,” Basu added.
Gopal Bhand was regarded as the best jester in the court of the 18th-century Nadia king.
The education department on Monday wrote a letter to Raj Bhavan asserting that a circular it issued on Saturday, in which the secretary to the chancellor asked the officers of state-aided universities “not to take orders directly” from the state government, should not have been issued.
The letter signed by the special commissioner of the university branch of the education department says Rule 8 (5) of the West Bengal State Universities (Terms and Conditions of Service of the Vice Chancellor and the Manner and Procedure of Official Communication) Rules, 2019, mandate that the if the chancellor wants to make any communication to any state-aided university the “same must be routed through the department of higher education”.
“The circular under reference has not been routed through the department…,” says the department’s letter.
At a news conference held in his chamber on the Assembly premises, minister Basu said the chancellor was bound to consult the education department even for appointing interim VCs in state-aided universities.
“He is disregarding what the Supreme Court and the UGC have said. He is disregarding the laws of the state government. It is categorically specified in the laws that the chancellor cannot take any decision unilaterally. If the chancellor is to appoint a vice-chancellor, this is applicable for the appointment of an interim VC as well, he is
bound to do that in consultation with the department,” Basu said.”
The education minister on Monday pulled up the chancellor for appointing those not associated with education as VCs and referred to the appointment of a former judge and a retired police officer for the job.
Calls, emails and text messages from this newspaper to chancellor Bose failed to elicit any response.