The Supreme Court seeks formal views of West Bengal Governor and State Government on unanimous recommendations for 12 Vice-Chancellors. Justice UU Lalit’s committee report plays a key role in advancing appointments amid administrative standoff.
New Delhi: The Supreme Court of India on Monday examined the recommendations made by the Search-cum-Selection Committee for the appointment of Vice-Chancellors in West Bengal universities.
The Bench, comprising Justices Surya Kant and N. Kotiswar Singh, noted that the Committee had unanimously recommended 12 candidates for 12 universities in the state.
The Court directed the Attorney General, R. Venkataramani, and Senior Advocate Jaideep Gupta to obtain formal instructions from the Governor of West Bengal (Chancellor of the universities) and the State Government regarding these recommendations.
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The Court observed,
“After considering academic record, experience and opinions of the Chief Minister and Hon’ble Chancellor, and the written vision statements of the candidates, the Search-cum-Selection Committees have given their preference list for 15 universities. The report reveals that for 12 universities, the Search-cum-Selection Committee was unanimous. For the remaining 3 universities, two different preference lists are prepared by different groups within the Committee.”
Regarding West Bengal State University and Cooch Behar Panchanan Barma University, the Supreme Court noted that the Committee would be holding interactions with candidates on Monday.
The Bench further stated,
“As of now, it seems to us that there shall not be any controversy with respect to appointment of the 12 VCs where the Committee has given unanimous opinion. With a view to facilitate such appointments, photostat copy of the unanimous recommendations made by the Committee, along with forwarding letter of Justice UU Lalit, has been handed over to learned AG as well as Sh. Jaideep Gupta, learned senior counsel for the State… They are requested to have formal instructions in terms of the observations made hereinabove.”
The Court also clarified the process for West Bengal State University, stating that the Committee shall reconsider the originally recommended candidates in alphabetical order and fix their inter-se merit. The matter is scheduled for the next hearing on Friday, September 26.
Earlier, on September 1, Senior Advocate Jaideep Gupta had informed the Court that the case was listed for September 26 but highlighted that former Chief Justice U.U. Lalit’s report had already been submitted to the Registry.
He urged the Court for a shorter hearing date, which led the Bench to prepone the hearing.
The Supreme Court has previously directed both sides—the Governor and the State Government—to work towards resolving the matter.
It also sought the assistance of Justice (Retd.) U.U. Lalit in preparing a framework to address the ongoing dispute.
The issue holds significant importance for higher education governance in West Bengal, with several university appointments pending amid a continuing standoff between the Raj Bhavan and the State administration.
The Court is expected to review Justice Lalit’s report and determine the next steps when the matter is taken up again.
Notably, the Supreme Court in January 2025 had granted more time to West Bengal Governor C.V. Ananda Bose to finalize the appointment process for Vice-Chancellors in the state’s universities.
On December 9, 2024, the Court was informed that the Governor had appointed full-term Vice-Chancellors for six universities and that appointments for five more universities would be completed soon.
Earlier, in November 2024, the Apex Court had declined to intervene in university appointments, following a report that the Committee led by former Justice U.U. Lalit had already submitted its recommendations to the West Bengal Chief Minister.
In July 2024, the Supreme Court had appointed former Chief Justice of India U.U. Lalit as Chairman of the Search-cum-Selection Committees for all state universities in West Bengal after a reported “rift” between the TMC government and the Governor, which had caused administrative chaos in these institutions.
Alongside Justice Lalit, the Court had nominated eminent educationists, scientists, jurists, subject experts, and administrators for empanelment on the Committee.
The Court invoked its powers under Article 142 of the Constitution to ensure complete justice and passed a common order for the constitution of the Search-cum-Selection Committee for all universities in the state.
Earlier, in March 2023, a Division Bench of the Calcutta High Court had quashed appointments of Vice-Chancellors in 29 state-run universities.
Reports had also indicated that the State Government had appointed or reappointed VCs in 24 state universities and extended their tenures without following the prescribed norms of the University Grants Commission (UGC).
The current case is officially titled State of West Bengal v. Dr. Sanat Kumar Ghosh, and it continues to be a landmark matter with wide implications for university governance, transparency, and compliance with statutory norms in West Bengal.
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