The Kerala High Court has stayed the order of the Court of Enquiry Commissioner and Special Judge Vigilance, Thrissur directing a probe against the Vice Chancellor and Pro Vice Chancellor of Calicut University.
Justice Harun Ul Rasheed passed the order on the petitions filed by M Abdul Salam, Vice Chancellor and K Ravindranath, Pro-Vice Chancellor of Calicut University challenging a complaint filed before Vigilance Court Thrissur. The Court stayed all further proceedings in the case for a period of three months. The complaint was filed before the Vigilance Court seeking for a direction to the Director of Vigilance and Anti Corruption Bureau, to register a case and to conduct an investigation.
The Complaint by V Stalin, former Deputy Registrar of Calicut University stated that the officials had violated academic regulations and helped a woman student pass the BTech examination. Santhosh Mathew, counsel for the petitioners, submitted that as per Statute 69 of the Calicut University First Statutes, 1977, The Director of Vigilance Investigation, Kerala should be competent to inquire into cases of misconduct and corruption against the officers-teachers and members of the non-teaching staff of the University on receipt of a request from the Registrar, University of Calicut.
The probe can be ordered against Vice Chancellor, the Pro-Vice Chancellor, the Controller of Examinations, the Registrar, and the Finance Officer only on the specific request of the Chancellor. Thus, it was crystal clear that only Chancellor has authority to direct the Director of Vigilance Investigation to take up investigation in case of allegations against the Vice Chancellor and the Pro-Vice Chancellor.
Ignoring this statutory provision, the order has been issued without any application of mind, the petitioners pointed out.