Kerala: SC cancels appointment of VC of APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University

On October 21, the Supreme Court cancelled the appointment of MS Rajasree as Vice-Chancellor of the APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University in Kerala. It was in 2019 that Rajasree was appointed as VC for a period of four years and this cancellation comes a few months before her retirement, as stated in a report by IANS. 

What did the court say?
The court has ruled her appointment as invalid as crucial University Grants Commission (UGC) norms were not followed. This point was raised in a petition filed by P S Sreejith whose plea to the same was dismissed by the Kerala High Court in 2021.

In this context, speaking to the media, Leader of Opposition VD Satheesan said, "There is absolutely no system in place when it comes to appointments as we often point out and this is the same with various universities." 

This move by the apex court is a jolt to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan as the Kerala High Court and the Chancellor of Universities, State Governor Arif Mohammed Khan have halted the appointment of Priya Varghese, wife of the private secretary to Vijayan in a teaching post at the Kannur University. Additionally, the reappointment of Kannur University's VC A Gopinath Raveendran has emerged as a debatable topic in the state.