JOIN USTaking umbrage at the government’s ‘interference’ in the functioning of universities, Governor and Pro-Chancellor, H R Bhardwaj, charged thepolitical leadership with usurping control of varsities.
Responding to the controversial extension of the tenure of Visveswaraya Technological University (VTU) Vice-Chancellor, H Maheshappa, he said the search committee was ‘deliberately’ delaying the process of naming the next VC.
“Why did the search committee did not name the VC for the university immediately? It (government) brought the names on the last day of the search committee meeting. Balram (former IISc director) did not even attend the last meeting of the search committee. As a result, under the law as the prochancellor I took the decision to extend the term of the present VC by one year,” said Bhardwaj.
According to the governor, he had exercised his authroity as prochancellor and it was up to the search committee to decide who should be the next VC.
Maheshappa was VC of VTU for the last four years and was mired in several controversies, including the charge of producing falsified documents and failing in seven out of ten semesters of his undergraduate degree course in mechanical engineering, which he finally managed to pass.