To
Dr M Hamid Ansari,
Chancellor, Panjab University & Hon’ble Vice-President of India,
6, Maulana Azad Road, New Delhi-110011. Email: vpindia@nic.in
Sub: Panjab University gifts “Honorary Professorship” to ineligible
retired bureaucrat.
(To be taken up by Senate in its Meeting dated 29-03-2015, Item C-57, Page-40)
Sir,
Two plus two cannot make five, even if supported by majority, but the
present Vice-Chancellor, of Panjab University who enjoys majority vote
in the Governing Bodies (Syndicate/Senate) seems hell bent to work
such wonders for his vested interests.
And the latest strategy in his nefarious academic designs is to gift
academic positions like “Honorary Professor” to the retired
bureaucrats who are otherwise not entitled to the same as per Panjab
University norms. Under such ‘give-and-take’ programmes, the
bureaucrats manage status and pilferage of monthly remuneration from
the University coffers even after their superannuation, and the higher
authorities of the university, on the other side, get unobstructed
flow of public funds from the Government by using influence/links
these bureaucrats enjoy in the concerned Departments/Ministries. How
many retired bureaucrats have been illegally benefitted under such
schemes of the present VC will come out only when I succeed to get the
information under ‘RTI Act’, but the single instance (given hereunder)
will suffice to say the bitter truth.
Mr Ashok Thakur, IAS (Retd.), former Education Secretary, Department
of Higher Education, MHRD, Government of India has been recommended to
your goodself by the Vice Chancellor and Syndicate (Item No. 42,
Agenda/Proceedings of Syndicate dated 08-03-2015) for conferment of
the title of ‘Honorary Professor’ in the Department of Public
Administration. Besides whole-time paid teachers of the University,
only ‘distinguished teacher’ who has rendered eminent services to the
cause of education can be conferred upon with this title as per
Section 18 of Panjab University Act, 1947 (PU Calendar, Vol. I, 2007,
Page-8). Contrarily however, Mr Ashok Thakur has never been a teacher,
muchtheless a distinguished teacher. Further mockery of the PU norms
stems from the fact that an ‘Honorary Professor’ is expected to
deliver a few lectures every year to the postgraduate classes.
Surprisingly, Mr Ashok Thakur himself has not done a post-graduation
in the subject of Public Administration in which he has been
recommended for appointment as Honorary Professor.
Obviously, the recommendation emanates not from the credentials of Mr
Thakur, but the “Chair” (position) he has held in the Government (i.e.
Education Secretary) and the foreseeable role he can play to protect
the wrong-doers of PU and fetch money from MHRD/UGC.
In view of facts stated above, your kind attention is invited to the
essential ingredients of Section-18 of the PU Act vis-a-vis compliance
of Mr Ashok Thakur to these requirements, accordingly requesting for
rejection of the recommendations made by the PU Vice-Chancellor and
Syndicate so that obliging bureaucrats of MHRD does not become a
practice in this University. Custodians of law in Panjab University
are day-by-day turning into law-breakers. But someone somewhere has to
nip the evil in the bud.
Yours faithfully.
Dr Rajinder K Singla
RTI Activist, Chandigarh.
Email: rajinderksingla1@gmail.com
# 102, Sector 23-A, Chandigarh.
Mobile: 9417538456