KOCHI: In a morale-boosting victory for Priya Varghese, wife of chief minister’s private secretary K K Ragesh, a division bench of the Kerala High Court on Thursday overturned a single judge order that directed Kannur University to reassess her credentials to be appointed as an associate professor.
The bench also invalidated the single judge’s conclusion that Priya lacked the teaching experience required to be included in the rank list for the Malayalam associate professor post in the varsity. It ruled that the university should decide whether she should stay on the list.
Now, Kannur University can proceed with the provisional rank list which Priya topped. The bench comprising Justice A K Jayasankaran Nambiar and Justice Muhammed Nias C P also declared that the period during which Priya pursued her PhD under the faculty development programme should not be excluded while considering her teaching/research experience for associate professor appointment. It also ruled that Priya is entitled to count the period she served on deputation as Director of Student Services/programme coordinator of NSS of Kannur University towards her teaching experience.
The bench issued the order while accepting Priya’s appeal against the single judge’s decision. The single judge had passed the order on the petition filed by Joseph Skariah, challenging the university’s decision to appoint Priya. Joseph, the assistant professor in the Malayalam Department of St Berchmans College, Changanassery, had been placed second in the rank list.
On Thursday, senior advocate Ranjith Thampan, Priya’s counsel, argued that she had 11 years and 20 days of teaching and/or research experience in an academic or research position, equivalent to an assistant professor. He contended that the single judge’s finding that the position of director of Student Services, a post held by Priya, did not qualify as teaching experience was incorrect.
Meanwhile, the bench emphasised that it could not disregard the government’s submission that the single judge’s finding that deemed the experience of a teacher in the position of director of Student Services/programme coordinator of NSS as a non-teaching experience would have adverse consequences for the academic community in the state.
The bench said it must accept the university’s decision to treat such experience as teaching experience unless it is in violation of statutory provisions. The court also directed that the second period of eight months and 24 days, from June 5, 2002, to February 28, 2003, which Priya spent as a lecturer at the Teacher Education Centre at Kannur University on an ad hoc/contract basis, be counted towards her teaching experience.
At the hearing, Kannur University said the approved seniority list is yet to be finalised. Once it is approved by the Syndicate, the appointment will be made. Any course of action to challenge the appointment would only arise at that stage.
At the time of submitting the application, Priya had 11 years, three months, and two days of experience as an assistant professor, making her fully qualified to apply for the position. The marks were awarded by the selection committee based on the candidate’s merits. The bench said in academic matters, decisions made by the university or other educational bodies should be given due weightage.
CPM to counter media trial
Thiruvananthpuram: The CPM state secretariat that met here on Thursday decided to defend its workers and organisation from the alleged media trial. The High Court’s observations on the media in the verdict on the appointment of Priya Varghese as an associate professor have come in handy for the leadership. The party will start a campaign against the so-called unjust and partial stand of the media. It will start with an article in the party organ Desabhimani on Friday. SFI state secretary P M Arsho and CPM’s Kerala University syndicate member K H Babujan met M V Govindan and apprised him of the situation.
Varsity will take fitting action: VC
Kannur: Kannur University will proceed with appropriate action regarding the appointment of Priya Varghese once they receive a copy of the verdict, Vice Chancellor Professor Gopinath Raveendran told reporters in Kannur on Thursday. He said the university will follow the court order in initiating the necessary steps for the appointment.
“As per the rank list, Priya secured the top position. With the division bench overturning the previous single-bench verdict, Priya is naturally reinstated as the first-ranked candidate. However, the varsity will take a decision on the matter only after obtaining a copy of the verdict,” he said.