Kochi: In a boost to the state government amid its ongoing tussle with the Raj Bhavan over control of state universities, the Kerala High Court on Monday directed the government to initiate steps to fill the post of Vice-Chancellor of APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University (KTU).

Justice Gopinath P, heading the single bench, also ruled that the appointment of Prof K Sivaprasad of CUSAT as interim Vice-Chancellor was legally untenable, as the Governor had not selected him from the panel of names recommended by the state government, as mandated by the APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University Act, 2015.

The judge, on May 19, also passed a similar order in the case of Dr Ciza Thomas's appointment as the interim Vice-Chancellor of Kerala University of Digital Sciences, Additional Advocate General Asok M Cherian told Onmanorama. However, the copy of that judgment is yet to be released, he said.

Despite finding the appointments legally unsustainable, the court said it would not dislodge them from office, as their six-month tenures are due to end on May 27, 2025.

The appointments were made by then Governor Arif Mohammed Khan, as ex-officio Chancellor of the two universities, on November 27, 2024. The very next day, the state government moved the High Court, arguing that the Acts governing both universities required the Governor to appoint interim Vice-Chancellors from a panel of names recommended by the state.

In all other universities in Kerala, Chancellors can appoint interim Vice-Chancellors without consulting the government. But the Acts governing KTU and the Digital University carve out an exception.

According to Section 13(7) of the KTU Act, the government may recommend for the interim post a Vice-Chancellor of any other university, the Pro-Vice Chancellor of KTU, or the Secretary of the Higher Education Department. Similarly, under Section 13(10) of the Digital University Act, 2021, the government can recommend either a university Vice-Chancellor or the Secretary of the Electronics and IT Department.

However, a Division Bench of the High Court on February 16, 2023 -- and earlier, the Supreme Court -- ruled that interim Vice-Chancellors must also meet the eligibility criteria set by the UGC: at least 10 years' experience as a professor. This effectively ruled out bureaucrats from being considered.

KTU currently has no Pro-Vice Chancellor.
With 11 of the 13 universities currently headed by interim Vice-Chancellors appointed by Governor Khan -- most of whom are unlikely to enjoy the government's confidence -- the state's options are severely limited. "If there are no eligible candidates, the government can recommend names from outside this list, provided they meet UGC norms," said Additional Advocate General Cherian. To be sure, Justice Gopinath's judgment directed the state government to recommend qualified individuals to the Governor, without invoking specific provisions of the University Act.

The post of KTU Vice-Chancellor fell vacant on October 21, 2022, when Prof Rajasree M S stepped down after the Supreme Court declared her appointment void. The court held that the inclusion of the Chief Secretary in the search committee violated UGC norms, as committee members should not be "connected" to the university. Further, the committee had recommended only Dr Rajasree, instead of a panel of at least three names, to the Governor.

Since then, the post has remained vacant, fuelling a prolonged legal and administrative standoff between the Governor and the government.

In Monday's order, Justice Gopinath tilted the balance in the government's favour by directing it to recommend names, as per UGC norms, for a new interim Vice-Chancellor. Simultaneously, the government must begin the process of appointing a regular Vice-Chancellor, unless restrained by a court, the judgment said. This direction is significant because, in all other universities, it is the Chancellor who initiates the appointment process by constituting a search-cum-selection committee.

In contrast, the KTU Act is silent on who should form this committee -- a loophole the government latched on to reclaim the control of the university.

By asking the government to begin the process to appoint the VC, the court has upheld the state government’s decision to form a search-cum-selection committee for KTU on April 8, 2024, said the Additional Advocate General. "The order gives the green signal to the committee to proceed," he said.

Nearly four months after this committee was constituted, the Chancellor formed a parallel search committee. On August 1, 2024, the High Court stayed the Raj Bhavan's notification forming that second committee.

The whistleblower organisation Save the University Campaign Committee has questioned the legality of the government's search committee. "In the end, the Chancellor is the appointing authority. He can ignore the committee's recommendations," said R S Sasikumar, education law expert and chairman of the committee.

His reason: The five-member search committee does not have the Governor’s nominee and is not as per the KTU Act, which it cannot because Chief Secretary cannot be part of the committee as per court rulings.

But the committee is formed under the yet-to-be-enacted University Laws (Amendment) Bill, which seeks to remove the Governor as ex-officio Chancellor.

The committee includes two government nominees, one representative each from the UGC, the university, and the Kerala State Higher Education Council.

Citing precedence, Sasikumar said that the Raj Bhavan is likely to appeal the single bench order.

When Governor Khan appointed Dr Ciza Thomas as interim KTU VC in 2022, the state had challenged it on the grounds that she was not recommended by the government.

But on November 29, 2022, a single bench headed by Justice Devan Ramachandran dismissed the plea, observing that her appointment was for "a very short period, which is not even worth a legal dispute" as long as she was qualified.

Justice Ramachandran had also directed the university, Chancellor, and UGC to constitute a selection committee and appoint a VC within three months.

The state appealed, and a Division Bench of Justices A Muhamed Mustaque and Shoba Annamma Eapen ruled in the government's favour, allowing it to suggest a panel of at least three names.

The Division Bench also set aside Justice Ramachandran's "unwarranted" directions, because the original petition only challenged Dr Thomas's appointment and the Chancellor’s authority.

"This time too, the petitions only challenged the appointment of interim Vice-Chancellors. But the single bench went on to direct the government to appoint a regular Vice-Chancellor," Sasikumar said.

Even as the judiciary offers the government a reprieve, the next chapter in the Raj Bhavan-government standoff will be shaped by how Governor Rajendra Arlekar engages with the precedents set by Khan.