Kerala VC Appointments: Supreme Court asks Justice Dhulia Committee to recommend one name per university

NEW DELHI: Noting the continuous deadlock between the Kerala chief minister and the governor, the Supreme Court on Thursday asked a committee headed by Justice (retd) Sudhanshu Dhulia to recommend one name each for appointing vice chancellors in two technical universities.

The top court was hearing the matter related to the appointments of VCs of the APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University and the University of Digital Sciences, Innovation and Technology. A bench comprising Justice JB Pardiwala and Justice KV Viswanathan asked the committee to submit the names in a sealed cover by next Wednesday, and the matter will be taken up for hearing on December 18.

As the hearing commenced, Attorney General R Venkataramani told the court that there is a letter written by the chancellor to the chief minister . However, the bench declined to see the letter. Senior advocate Jaideep Gupta, appearing for the Kerala government, informed the bench that the law minister and the higher education minister met the chancellor on December 10.

Gupta said that the chief minister's objection is only with respect to one name, and that the chancellor did not indicate any particular objection to the other names. The court noted in its order that despite its best efforts, the deadlock continues till date and the chancellor and the chief minister have not been able to reach to any consensus for the appointment of vice chancellors in the two universities.

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Give us a name for each university in a sealed cover, says SC

"It was expected that the chancellor and the CM would reach to some consensus. However unfortunately nothing has been done so far except some exchange of letters between the two. Today, when we started hearing the matter, the AG handed over a sealed envelope containing the reply of the chancellor to the chief minister. We decline to look into the same.

"We are of the view that in such circumstances we should request the committee headed by Justice Dhulia to look into the letter of the chief minister and the reply of the chancellor and give us one composite report. We request the committee to give us one name for each university in a sealed cover. We request the committee to undertake this exercise and forward its report by next Thursday," the bench said.

The top court had earlier said it would intervene to resolve the ongoing deadlock over the selection of vice chancellors for two technical universities in Kerala if Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and Governor-cum-chancellor Rajendra Arlekar do not reach a consensus. The apex court had asked Venkataramani, appearing for the governor, and Gupta to find out some amicable solution to the impasse.

On November 28, the top court took serious exception to the Kerala governor and chancellor "not looking" at the Dhulia Committee report on appointment of vice chancellors of two universities and remarked it is not just an ordinary piece of paper. The top court had asked the Kerala governor to take a call on the report within a week and apprise the decision to the apex court on December 5.

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It passed the order after Gupta complained that Chief Minister Vijayan had forwarded his recommendations for appointment of vice chancellors for APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University and University of Digital Sciences, Innovation and Technology, based on the report of Justice Dhulia panel to the governor-cum-chancellor, but no decision has been taken till now.

The bench noted that in compliance with the order dated August 18, Justice (retd) Dhulia, undertook the necessary exercise and has prepared a report accordingly. On September 2, the Kerala governor moved the apex court for the exclusion of CM Vijayan from the selection process of the vice chancellors.

The governor said neither of the universities envisioned any role for the chief minister in the selection process. On August 18, to end the "impasse" between the Kerala governor and the state government over the appointment of vice-chancellors, the apex court appointed former apex court judge Dhulia as head of a panel meant for shortlisting names.

Justice Dhulia demitted office as Supreme Court judge on August 9. On July 30, the top court asked both the Kerala government and Attorney General R Venkataramani, appearing for the governor, to "work out some mechanism in harmony" to resolve the dispute.

The chancellor moved the top court challenging the order of the division bench of the high court disposing of a plea filed against a single judge's order setting aside the November 27, 2024 notification appointing professor K Sivaprasad of Cochin University of Science and Technology as vice-chancellor, APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University.

The Kerala government challenged the notification before the high court, saying the notification stipulated the appointment was till further orders whereas Section 13 (7) of the APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University Act, 2015 says "for a period of not exceeding six months in the aggregate".