K’taka HC Dismisses Plea Challenging Vidhyashankar Appointment as VTU-Chancellor

The Karnataka High Court has dismissed a petition challenging the appointment of S Vidhyashankar as the Vice-Chancellor of Visvesvaraya Technological University (VTU).

A bench comprising Chief Justice Prasanna B Varale and Justice Krishna S Dixit had previously reserved judgment on the matter.

The Court clarified that it has not expressed any opinion on the legality or the entire process regarding his appointment. It emphasized that this decision solely pertains to the specific petition and will not impact any other related cases.

Former interim Vice-Chancellor of Mysore University, Prof B Shivaraj, who had retired, filed the petition concerning the appointment. The petitioner contended that the constitution of the State Government’s inquiry committee for the VTU Chancellor’s appointment was irregular according to University Grants Commission (UGC) rules and Section 13 of the VTU Act. This was due to the absence of a UGC representative with eligibility and integrity.

As per the petitioner, the appointment of an individual meeting the criteria and requirements of the Central Human Resource Development Department and UGC is imperative for the role of Vice-Chancellor at VTU.