BANGALORE: The High Court on Monday issued a notice to the state government about alleged irregularities in the appointment of assistant professors to various departments of city-based Kidwai Memorial Institute of Oncology.
Last week, an NGO named Karnataka Shuddhikaran Samiti had filed a public interest petition against the chairman of the institute’s governing council, its director and the Health Department. The NGO claimed that on July 29, 2013, the government had issued a notification for the appointment of assistant professors at the institute. But it later annulled this directive and notified the institute in an order dated March 6, 2014.
The petitioner claimed that the notification was annulled following irregularities in the appointment process. However, the institute went ahead and called a governing council meeting to formalise the appointments. The petitioner appealed to the court to scrap the appointments and order a fresh round.
Details of Govt Schools Sought
A division bench of the High Court has asked petitioner M S Srinivasa Reddy to submit details of students and teachers of government primary schools in Kolar district.
According to Reddy, a resident of Mulabagal town, the government has not filled teacher vacancies in many public schools. He submitted that the taluk has 181 schools and 182 of 725 teacher posts are lying vacant.
In response, the government pleader described the allegation as “baseless” and questioned the accuracy of the petitioner’s information. He said most of the schools have been closed for want of students and so, no teachers have been posted there.