Karnataka HC quashes appointment of University of Mysore VC

On Tuesday, September 12, a single-judge bench of the Karnataka High Court (HC) quashed the March 23 appointment of Prof Lokanath NK as the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Mysore. Justice NS Sanjay Gowda ordered the quashing of the judgment on a petition filed by Professor Sharath Ananthamurthy, School of Physics, University of Hyderabad.

Ananthamurthy, son of Jnanpith Award-winning Kannada writer, the late UR Ananthamurthy, had challenged the appointment on grounds that it was in violation of rules. It was alleged that Prof Lokanath faced criminal charges and was not qualified for the post. The petition said that Lokanath was not eligible to be considered for the VC's post and the authorities had allegedly violated Clause 7.3.0 of the University Grants Commission (UGC) regulations in recommending his name in the panel of candidates, as per a report by PTI.

Ananthamurthy filed his application for the post of vice-chancellor on November 18, 2022. Another applicant, Prof H Rajashekar had approached the high court challenging some remarks made against his name in the main list. The HC on March 6, 2023, disposed of that petition directing the authorities to appoint the VC strictly in accordance with the rules.

The Search Committee then submitted a fresh list of three names that included the name of Prof Lokanath on March 16. Lokanath was selected as the Vice-Chancellor on March 23. In the present hearing, the court also directed the state government to follow the procedure and appoint a new VC to the university, as per PTI.