Dhulia report not "ordinary piece of paper": Supreme Court asks Governor to act on Digital and Technology VC appointments amid ongoing delays

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court has asked Governor Arlekkar to take an immediate decision on the appointment of permanent VCs in digital and technical universities. The government said that no action was taken even after the Chief Minister recorded his opinion on the report of the committee headed by Dhulia and sent it to the Governor. The Supreme Court bench comprising Justices JB Pardiwala and KV Viswanathan criticized the Kerala Governor for delaying action on the Justice Dhulia committee's report on Vice-Chancellor appointments, reminding him that the report is not an "ordinary piece of paper" but a document requiring a decision. The Court instructed the Governor to act on the report promptly, as he is expected to make a decision on the committee's recommendations.

The court asked the governor's lawyer why he had not taken a decision. "The report was prepared by a former Supreme Court judge. A decision should be taken immediately and informed. We will examine and decide whether the governor's decision is right or wrong. We will consider it again on December 5." The court did not take the governor's lawyer's argument that the committee's proceedings were not received, although he had requested it. "How can the failure to receive the relevant documents hinder the examination of the report? The committee was appointed with the consent of all parties, including the governor," the court added.

Chief Minister ignored merit

The petition filed by the Governor states that the Chief Minister prepared the priority list, completely ignoring merit. The Chief Minister did not give priority to the two people who were placed in the panels prepared by the Dhulia Committee for the appointment of VCs. It was also stated that they were actually the ones who were eligible to become VCs. It was also requested that Justice Dhulia be directed to hand over the documents related to the committee. The state government's lawyer argued that all the documents had been handed over.