MS University senate adopts changes to statutes

VADODARA: MS University’s senate body on Monday passed two amendments to statues 139 and 140 whereby ad hoc teachers of faculty of medicine will lose the privilege of contesting and voting in the elections of university’s senate and syndicate bodies in future.
At the same time, those teachers from faculty of medicine who get elected or are appointed to the bodies like senate, syndicate, P G Council and Board of Studies among others will continue to hold their positions even if they are transferred by Gujarat government from the faculty of medicine to any other medical college in Gujarat.

The two amendments which were a major bone of contention between the warring factions of the saffron camp including the ruling group and the ‘sankalan samiti’ were passed after taking the majority view.

As many as 21 senators, most of them having their allegiance to the ‘sankalan samiti’ recorded their dissent to the proposal to making the amendments to the statues of the university act.

Even since the proposals have been passed by the university’s syndicate body in which ruling group has complete majority, the ‘sankalan samiti’ has been alleging that is being done to “satiate some selfish motives”.

When the proposal was moved during the last hours of the senate meet, members of the ‘sankalan samiti’ and the ruling group entered into heated arguments.

While some members demanded that the proposal be put on hold, MSU vice-chancellor professor Parimal Vyas refused to do so.

A member of the ‘sankalan samiti’ also threatened to stall the senate proceedings while another demanded an apology from a senator backed by the ruling group for allegedly making unsavoury comments.

As members of the samiti and the ruling group entered into heated arguments, tempered soared in the otherwise peaceful senate meeting and couple of members rushed near the chair. It was later that the proposals were passed after recording dissent.

By and large, Monday’s senate turned unique. It was for the first time in the recent history of the university that the senate meet neither witnessed any walkouts nor stormy discussions – scenes that usually are witnessed in the initial hours of the meet.

It was also for the first time after she took over as chancellor of MSU in 2015 that Shubhangini Raje Gaekwad did not chair the annual meet citing personal reasons.

In absence of old guards, who were known for cornering the university administration for lengthy hours, the senate meeting which had started at 10 am got winded up by 5 pm.

While like in the past, the senate did pay tribute to those from the university who have passed away, the 30 minutes break that is taken after paying tribute was not taken this year.

A proposal to bring department of physical education under the umbrella of faculty of education and psychology and offer bachelors and masters courses in physical education was approved by the senate. Similarly, the proposal to convert Baroda Sanskrit Mahavidyalaya into faculty of Sanskrit was also approved.