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NEW DELHI: Racing against the model code of conduct, regime has managed to get the nod of President Pratibha Patil for its picks for vice-chancellors for 15 new central universities.

Among those elected, Mool Chand Sharma, currently vice-chairperson UGC, is a known confidant of HRD minister Arjun Singh, and a few others like Surbhi Banerjee, who is the official writer of Jyoti Basu, and Laxman Chaturvedi have courted controversy in the past.

In 1990, Banerjee’s appointment as pro-VC of Calcutta University had made a major row. Chaturvedi as VC of Pandit Ravi Shankar Shukla University had last year banned Catholic colleges affiliated to the university from admitting students. The ban was lifted only after a high court order.

With one member of the selection committee, Govardhan Mehta, having objected to the rush in which the process was completed, informed sources said that the selection could be challenged in court.

Though three senior officials of UGC were shortlisted, only Sharma could make it. He will be the VC of the central university in Haryana. Banerjee would be the VC of the central university in Orissa and Chaturvedi will head Guru Ghasidas University in Chhattisgarh that is being upgraded to a central university.

Cell biologist RC Sobti, currently VC of Panjab University, has been elected for the central university in Himachal Pradesh. AM Pathan, VC of Maulana Azad National Urdu University, would be the VC of the central university in Karnataka. RK Kale of the department of life sciences in JNU has been made VC of the central university in Gujarat while renowned psychologist Janak Pandey, earlier with Allahabad University, would go to Patna to head Bihar’s first central university.

NS Gajviye from Gorakhpur University has been made VC of Hari Singh Gour University in Madhya Pradesh. Like Chhattisgarh, Hari Singh Gour University will be upgraded to a central university.

SK Singh, the current VC of Hemvati Nandan Bahuguna Garhwal University in Uttarakhand, which has also been upgraded to a central university, has been retained. But he had to go through the process of reselection. Like the other newly-appointed VCs, he will have a fresh tenure of five years.

In Kerala, the new central university will be headed by Gincy George, currently with Kerala University. Communication expert BP Sanjay, pro-VC, Hyderabad University, has been made VC of the new central university in Tamil Nadu. Abdul Wahid, former VC of Kashmir University, Srinagar, has been made VC of the new central university in Jammu and Kashmir.

Jharkhand will get DT Khating, registrar, North-East Hill University, as VC of the state’s first central university. MM Salunkhe will be VC of the central university in Rajasthan and Jairup Singh, VC, Guru Nanak Dev University, would head the central university in Punjab.

NEW DELHI: Appointment of vice-chancellors in 15 new central universities was challenged in the Supreme Court on Thursday on various grounds, including the manner in which HRD ministry hastily completed the process.

Petitioner Kapil Kumar, head, department of history, IGNOU, while seeking a stay on the appointments, also challenged the legality of section 44 of the Central Universities Act, 2009. Kumar said the section was “unconstitutional in view of the fact that it is arbitrary and vests blanket powers unto the visitor in matters relating to the appointment of the first vice-chancellors of 15 central universities” for which Rs 500 crore has been sanctioned in the plot budget.

The petitioner also claimed that the visitor’s power of appointment had been diluted by the HRD ministry by not laying down specified course of action or criteria to appoint the V-Cs in 15 new universities.

The petition pointed out that advertisements for V-Cs posts were issued on January 17 and gave only 13 days to applicants to apply whereas the Department of Personnel and Training stipulates a minimum of 45 days from the date of advertisement. Also, applications were invited by the HRD ministry and not by the President’s office.

On the process adopted by the search committee headed by Preparation Fee member B C Mungekar, the petition said it met only twice to shortlist candidates from 1,500 applications. “There is no transparency in the method of selection and it is not made known to anyone as to what was the criteria for the said shortlisting,” the petition said.

Moreover, the petition also questioned the credibility of Mushirul Hasan, a member of the search committee and V-C, Jamia Milia Islamia, whose term ends in July. “A person who is in the race for extension of his tenure as V-C, may not be seen as a neutral have fun to be a part of the search committee,” the petition said.

Another problem with the appointment process, the petition said, was that after shortlisting, vigilance clearance was not sought from the CVC. “Instead, it was rushed through from the heads of institutions where the candidates were presently employed,” it added.

The petition also highlighted how four of the elected V-Cs — A M Pathan, Janak Pandey, R C Sobti and Abdul Wahid — were above 60 years despite the advertisement seeking candidates preferably below 60. Most of the appointed V-Cs, the petition said, were already V-Cs and after their appointment was made public, some of them were holding dual charge.

The petition also pointed out that there were inquiries pending against three of the appointed V-Cs and they could not be relieved till the probe was completed. One of them is Jai Rup Singh, V-C, Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar, who has now been appointed as V-C of central university in Punjab. Others are Laxman Chaturvedi, V-C, Chhattisgarh Central University, who is facing inquiry by Lok Ayukta, Raipur, on charges of corruption and N S Gajabhiya.