Cutting across party lines, members of the Legislative Council on Monday urged the government to take action against hardly-known institutions here and abroad that dole out honorary doctorates indiscriminately.
Raising the issue, BJP member Tejaswini Gowda said there has to be guidelines for awarding honorary doctorates and the government should have some control over it. BJP member Y.A. Narayanswamy also said that there is no regulation of honorary doctorates and anyone can “buy it” for as low as ₹50,000.
Congress member Dharmasena also recalled his experience when a few people had approached him offering an honorary doctorate. “Though I refused initially, they convinced me to take it. Only when I hesitantly agreed that they placed a demand for ₹1.75 lakh. After I refused to pay any money, they came down to ₹50,000. They even said two more along with me could get honorary doctorates. It was s package!” he recounted. Responding to the issue, Deputy Chief Minister and Higher Education Minister C.N. Ashwath Narayan acknowledged that it had become a trend that must be controlled. “There is a network that operates. There is no recognition and it is illegal. If there are complaints, we will act upon them,” he said.
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