Nagpur: With the recent appointment of four new deans and pro-vice chancellor, the Shikshan Manch has tightened its grip over Nagpur University affairs, say its officials and statutory members.
The march of the Manch, which has links to the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), had begun long before, including the appointment of Subhash Chaudhari as vice-chancellor. Last week, Manch secretary Sanjay Dudhe was appointed as pro-VC.
On Monday, the NU administration appointed Ramtek-based Tai Golwalkar Mahavidyalaya principal Rajesh Singru as science dean, Tirpude Institute of Management lecturer Sanjay Kavishwar as commerce and management dean, and NU public administration department senior teacher Nirman Singh as humanities dean. The VC has retained Rajashree Vaishnao as interdisciplinary dean. “All of them are related to the Manch in one way or the other,” say NU officials.
Dudhe reportedly fared poorly in NU registrar’s interviews when SP Kane was VC. Still, on the insistence of Manch’s senior members, his name was recommended by the VC to chancellor Bhagat Singh Koshyari. Dudhe had also accompanied Chaudhari and Manch coordinator Kalpana Pande when they went to meet Union minister Nitin Gadkari after the VC’s appointment, which had raised eyebrows in university circles. It had sparked speculation about him being named as pro-VC.
Though Pande didn’t pick up TOI’s calls or reply to text messages, officials and statutory members said she had become the most powerful person in NU circles with these appointments, and would play a role of ‘kingmaker’. Officials said Pande will call the shots in all major NU decisions, although she is not a member of any of the statutory bodies.
Former and current statutory body members expressed concern over the way ‘under qualified’ persons of a particular ideology were being appointed in NU. They also questioned appointment of a private college principal and teacher as dean, despite many qualified and experienced candidates being available in NU departments.
“It’s a complete mockery of entire system where powers are being misused. At least they could have appointed qualified people from their organization, who could be acceptable to the society. Highly experienced candidates like Vinayak Deshpande could have been named on top post though he wasn’t associated with the Manch. However, the top Manch officials know that such candidates wouldn’t blindly follow their diktats. They wanted puppets on the posts, who would sign on the papers without questioning them,” senior Senate member Baban Taywade said.
Agreeing with him, former management council member Abhijit Wanjari said such appointments from particular groups and ideologies would lead to political interference in NU affairs, which is detrimental for academic activities, and promote dictatorship. “The Maharashtra government’s move to appoint a panel under former UGC chairman Sukhdeo Thorat to amend the Maharashtra Public Universities Act, 2016, is a good move. In the old Act, the provision for selecting statutory members was proper, and it used to give proper representation to all stakeholders, unlike in the new law,” he said.