Kochi: The Kerala High Court has ordered a suo motu inquiry into the appointment of V A Arun Kumar, son of former Chief Minister V S Achuthanandan, as Director in-charge of the Institute of Human Resources Development (IHRD).

Justice D K Singh ordered that Arun Kumar’s eligibility to hold the post be examined. It should be examined whether the appointment was made due to political influence, he added.

The order was issued on a petition filed by Dr Vinu Thomas, Dean of APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University and former Principal-in-Charge of Thrikkakara Model Engineering College. During his tenure as Principal-in-charge, Thomas was issued a show-cause notice alleging irregularities in the purchase of fish, meat, eggs, and milk for the boys' hostel, as well as in several construction projects.

However, Vinu Thomas approached the High Court stating that he was not provided with the necessary documents to submit a reply. A single bench ordered the release of the required documents, but a Division bench later quashed this order. 

Vinu Thomas again approached the High Court, stating that he was being denied digital copies of the documents due to the Division bench order. He pointed out that the order does not apply to digital copies.

The court stated that even banning the taking of digital copies in this manner amounts to a denial of natural justice. The court observed that if even a digital copy is not provided, the petitioner will not be able to support his case. This shows the vindictive attitude of the IHRD Director-in-Charge, the court said.

The court observed that a person who has never been a teacher for a day and has only served as a clerk is now in the position of Director-in-Charge. The court highlighted that the University Grants Commission appoints people with years of experience as professors to such positions. In this scenario, the court noted that it is unusual for a clerk to be promoted due to political influence and subsequently become the director of such an institution.

The court ruled that along with providing the petitioner with digital copies of the necessary documents, an enquiry should be conducted to ascertain whether the Director-in-charge is qualified to hold the position. Therefore, the court directed that a suo motu public interest litigation be registered in this regard and filed before the Division Bench.