Today, On 18th August, In the Kerala universities vice-chancellor appointments case, the Supreme Court appointed retired Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia as chairperson of the search committee, empowering him to form joint or separate panels to shortlist candidates for both universities at the earliest.
New Delhi: The Supreme Court appointed retired Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia as the chairperson of a search committee responsible for shortlisting candidates for the vice-chancellor positions at APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University and Digital University.
A bench comprising Justices JB Pardiwala and KV Viswanathan emphasized the need to resolve the ongoing stalemate between the Kerala Governor and the elected State government promptly, urging all parties to cooperate.
Justice Dhulia has been authorized to establish separate or joint search and selection committees for both universities.
The Court stated,
“We firmly believe that this impasse which has been created should be taken care of at the earliest. We hereby appoint Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia as chairperson of the search cum selection committee for both the universities. The chairperson is authorised to constitute separate or joint search cum selection committees for the two universities.”
The Court further specified that the committee(s) should comprise two members selected from lists proposed by the Chancellor (Governor) and the State government, with the chairperson retaining the final decision regarding committee membership.
The final structure of the committee(s) must be communicated to the Court.
Additionally, the committee is required to compile a panel of at least three candidates, listed in alphabetical order, who are considered for the vice-chancellor roles.
The Court requested Justice Dhulia to form the search-cum-selection committee(s) within two weeks.
The State government’s Department of Higher Education has been instructed to invite applications from candidates interested in the vice-chancellor positions. Interested candidates will have four weeks to submit their applications, which will be reviewed by the State within one week and then presented to Justice Dhulia, the chairperson of the search-cum-selection committee.
The committee is expected to prepare a dossier for the candidates considered for the vice-chancellor roles.
The Court urged,
“The search committee may endeavour to complete their task within 1 month from today.”
Furthermore, Justice Dhulia will receive an honorarium of Rs.3 lakh for each proceeding.
The Court also noted that he will be provided with an office, secretarial support, transit accommodation in Trivandrum, an official vehicle, and other amenities appropriate to his constitutional status.
The bench indicated that broader issues related to the case will be addressed later,
“The larger issues in this litigation shall be considered once this entire exercise is complete.”
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This decision came in response to a petition from the Kerala Governor, acting as Chancellor of APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University, challenging a Kerala High Court ruling that affirmed the State government’s authority to recommend temporary vice-chancellors.
The matter also included a new application from the State, contesting a recent notification by the Governor appointing Dr. K Sivaprasad as interim vice-chancellor of AKTU.
Attorney General R. Venkataramani represented the Governor of Kerala, while Senior Advocate Jaideep Gupta appeared for the Kerala government.
Case Title: The Chancellor, APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University vs. State of Kerala and Ors.