In Another Tiff With Raj Bhavan, West Bengal Government Seeks Withdrawal Of Order Appointing Four University VCs

The state higher education department has sent a letter to the Raj Bhavan requesting the withdrawal of the appointment order for four vice-chancellors, which was posted on the governor and chancellor C V Ananda Bose's X handle on 5 April.

The Raj Bhavan had announced the appointment of four interim vice-chancellors for vacant state-aided universities in Bengal as per a report by The Times of India.

The letter from the higher education department cited the Supreme Court's 6 October order, which stated, "No appointment of ad hoc or acting vice-chancellor shall be made in any university till further orders."

It described the unilateral appointment of interim VCs by the chancellor as "unlawful" and "contrary" to the apex court's direction.

The state government indicated that it would file a contempt case against the chancellor in the Supreme Court, with a hearing expected on 16 April.

The higher education department advised the Raj Bhavan to withdraw the appointment notice and suggested consulting with the state education minister, Bratya Basu, in accordance with the court order.

The ongoing feud between Mamata Banerjee-led West Bengal government and Raj Bhavan revolves around the appointment of interim vice-chancellors in state universities.

West Bengal's education minister Basu had earlier accused the Governor, who also serves as the chancellor of state-run universities, of seeking to undermine the higher education system and running a puppet regime within universities.

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