13 hrs ago
Haryana Sports University VC to Resign After Appointment Challenge
Ashok Kumar is the vice-chancellor of the Sports University of Haryana.
Some people challenged his appointment in court.
They said he did not meet the University Grants Commission’s rules for the job.
Kumar told the court he would resign within three weeks for personal reasons.
Because he is leaving, the court did not decide whether his appointment was legally valid.
The Haryana government must accept his resignation and arrange the next steps.
Until a new vice-chancellor is appointed, the senior-most dean will manage the university.
The court also said the next appointment must follow the applicable rules.
Vice-Chancellor Ashok Kumar told the Punjab and Haryana High Court he will resign within three weeks.
The appointment was challenged over alleged violations of University Grants Commission eligibility rules.
Petitioners argued Kumar lacked the required 10 years of professorial experience.
The court directed Haryana to accept the resignation and complete the process by October 31, 2026.
The university’s senior-most dean will serve as acting vice-chancellor until a regular appointment is made.
- Who
- Ashok Kumar, the Sports University of Haryana vice-chancellor, along with petitioners Dr Devender Singh Mor and another petitioner.
- What
- Kumar told the Punjab and Haryana High Court he will resign within three weeks amid a challenge to his appointment and pay fixation.
- Where
- The Sports University of Haryana at Rai, in Sonipat district, Haryana, and the Punjab and Haryana High Court.
- When
- Kumar was appointed on March 1, 2024, and the court ordered the resignation process to be completed by October 31, 2026.
- Why
- The appointment was challenged over alleged non-compliance with University Grants Commission regulations, including the requirement for 10 years of professorial experience.
Petitioners’ Position
Kumar and Government Position
Eligibility for appointment
Petitioners’ Position
The petitioners argued that University Grants Commission rules require at least 10 years of experience as a professor and that Kumar did not meet this condition.
Kumar and Government Position
Kumar’s appointment was made by the Haryana government as the university’s first vice-chancellor; the court did not rule on the appointment’s merits because he decided to resign.
Government’s appointment authority
Petitioners’ Position
The petitioners argued that the state’s authority to appoint the first vice-chancellor did not allow it to select someone who failed the prescribed eligibility requirements.
Kumar and Government Position
The state government’s position on this argument was not adjudicated by the court after Kumar agreed to leave the post.
Salary arrangement
Petitioners’ Position
The petitioners alleged that Kumar’s remuneration was calculated with reference to his former Director General of Police pay scale rather than the prescribed vice-chancellor pay structure.
Kumar and Government Position
The court did not decide the pay-fixation challenge after Kumar’s resignation undertaking resolved the immediate litigation.
Key facts
- Vice-chancellor
- Ashok Kumar, a retired Indian Police Service officer and former Uttarakhand Director General of Police.
- Appointment date
- March 1, 2024.
- Resignation timeline
- Kumar told the court he would resign within three weeks for personal reasons.
- Appointment challenge
- Petitioners alleged that Kumar did not meet the University Grants Commission Regulations, 2018 eligibility requirements.
- Pay dispute
- Petitioners also challenged a July 15, 2024 communication concerning Kumar’s pay fixation.
- Interim leadership
- The university’s senior-most dean will discharge the vice-chancellor’s functions until a regular arrangement or new appointment is made.
- Next appointment
- The Haryana government was directed to ensure that the next vice-chancellor is appointed under applicable University Grants Commission regulations.
Quotes
Ashok Kumar
Vice-chancellor of the Sports University of Haryana and retired Indian Police Service officer
“Jaan bachi to lakhon paye… baaki aap khud samajh lijiye (A life saved is worth millions… you can understand the rest).”
thestatesman.com
Sources
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