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Punjab: HC issues notice on petition challenging appointment of Baba Farid varsity V-C
Punjab and Haryana HC has issued a notice on the petition challenging the appointment of Dr Rajeev Sood as vice chancellor of Baba Farid University of Health Sciences, Faridkot
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Punjab and Haryana high court has issued a notice on the petition challenging the appointment of Dr Rajeev Sood as vice chancellor of Baba Farid University of Health Sciences, Faridkot.
A bench of justice Vinod Bhardwaj on Thursday issued notices to Punjab government, its chief secretary, and additional secretary to governor-cum-chancellor of Baba Farid University, Faridkot, and to Dr Rajeev Sood, for October 10 while taking up petition filed by advocate HC Arora, for seeking his removal.
Advocate Arora submitted that Dr Rajeev Sood has been appointed as vice chancellor of the varsity, for a period of 3 years, by notification dated June 6, 2023 issued by the additional chief secretary to governor, Punjab, as chancellor of the aforesaid University. He also submitted that before setting up the Search-Cum-Selection Committee for the purpose of scrutinising the names of candidates, for sending a panel of names to the chancellor-cum-governor of Punjab, a clear decision was taken by the government, on the basis of UGC regulations, that no person of eminence, in the sphere of high education, shall be taken as a member of the Search-Cum-Selection Committee for recommending the names of the candidates for appointment to the post of vice chancellor of the varsity, in case such person is connected in any manner with the said University.
The petitioner argued that the constitution of Search-Cum-Selection Committee shows that following three persons/officials (out of total six members of the said Committee), who are members of the Board of Management of Baba Farid University, Faridkot, were also made the members of the Search-Cum-Selection Committee -- chief secretary, Punjab who was the chairman, secretary to government of Punjab, Department of Medical Education and research members and director, Research and Medical Education Member.
Advocate Arora argued all these three are members of the Board of Management of Baba Farid University of Health Sciences, Faridkot. Thus, they being directly connected with the affairs of the varsity, could not have been made the members of Search-cum Selection Committee.
Thus, three out of the six members of the Search-cum-Selection Committee constituted by the government were ineligible to participate in the meetings of the said committee. For that reason, the deliberations of the Search-cum-Selection Committee set up by the Punjab government including its decision to recommend the names of five eligible persons for appointment as vice chancellor of the University clearly stood vitiated, and became illegal. The petitioner submitted that the selection and appointment of Dr Rajeev Sood as vice chancellor of Baba Farid University, Health Sciences, Faridkot hence stands vitiated, and therefore is liable to be set aside and quashed.
