Kannur: The screening committee of the Kannur University will review the qualifications of all candidates included in the rank list for the post of Associate Professor in its Malayalam in the wake of the controversial appointment of Priya Varghese, wife of Chief Minister’s private secretary K K Ragesh.
The decision of Vice Chancellor Professor Gopinath Raveendran was reported by Pro-VC Dr Sabu A Hameed in the syndicate meeting held on Wednesday. The same was taken as a follow-up action of the recent High Court order.
The High Court recently ruled that Dr Priya Varghese lacked credentials to be appointed as an Associate Professor.
Dr Priya, who got the first rank, didn’t have the required teaching experience, it noted, while directing the varsity authorities to review the qualifications of those included on the list and prepare a new one. Tuesday’s syndicate meeting was the first one to be convened after the court order.
The High Court order was on a petition moved by Dr Joseph Scaria, who came second in the list, challenging the appointment of Priya Varghese. C Ganesh was ranked third.
Meanwhile, the syndicate meeting didn’t make clear the number of candidates whose qualification would be reviewed. The screening committee will decide on the matter. While a section argues that only the qualifications of the three persons included in the rank list need to be reviewed, another group points out that the credentials of all six candidates on the list should be reassessed.
