KOCHI: The Kerala High Court on Tuesday held that the final orders should not be issued by the chancellor until the court takes a decision in the writ petitions filed by the vice-chancellors challenging the show-cause notice. In the notice, Governor Arif Mohammed Khan, the chancellor of universities in Kerala, had asked the VCs to explain what legal right they have to hold the office.
Justice Devan Ramachandran issued the order on the petitions filed by Kannur University VC Gopinath Ravindran and other VCs seeking to quash the show-cause notice.
At the hearing, Jaju Babu, the governor’s legal advisor who resigned later in the day, informed the court that all the VCs had furnished their reply to the show-cause notice by Monday. He also sought three more days to file a counter affidavit as the chancellor had been out of station and returned only recently. Kannur VC’s counsel Ranjith Thampan submitted that he had approached the court challenging the very authority of the chancellor to issue a show-cause notice.
‘Chancellor can’t adjudicate legality of VC appointment’
The chancellor also has asked the VCs to appear for a personal hearing. The counsel sought an order restraining the chancellor from issuing final orders. “Until and unless the case has been decided by the court, I don’t want to go before the chancellor for a personal hearing as he had called me a criminal,” submitted the counsel for the Kannur university VC.
Then the court said “you decide whether you want to appear or not. It’s your choice.” The Kannur VC submitted that he is holding the post after thorough legal scrutiny. Hence, the chancellor, who is only a statutory authority, cannot adjudicate the legality or otherwise of his appointment.
GUV’S LEGAL ADVISOR QUITS
Kochi: Senior advocate K Jaju Babu, legal advisor to Kerala governor, resigned on Tuesday. Senior advocate and former Bar Council chairman S Gopakumaran Nair has been appointed the legal counsel to the governor