MKU syndicate members demand appointment of Governor’s nominee to convenor committee

Syndicate and senate members discuss committee appointments, V-C selection, audit issues, thesis delays, and pension fund creation at MKU.

Two syndicate members and a few senate members demanded that a nominee of the Tamil Nadu Governor R. N. Ravi be appointed to the convenor committee at the Madurai Kamaraj University senate meeting held here on Friday.  

They pointed out that the existing two vacant positions in the convenor committee of the university should be filled immediately. They alleged that since only one member was from Madurai, he was unable to manage the administrative matters.  

As the Commissioner of Collegiate Education and Chairperson of convenor committee E. Sundaravalli was not present in Madurai and was held up in managing other universities, one of the syndicate members S. Theenathayalan raised the need for including more members to the committee.  

He insisted that a Governor’s nominee was indispensable in managing the university.  

However, Ms. Sundaravalli pointed out that the University statute did not mandate that four members should be present in the convenor committee, and as it did not specify the composition of the members in the committee, she denied the requirement to add more members.  

Supporting the chairperson on the matter, senate members including A. Velanganni Joseph, Professor and Head, Youth Welfare Studies, MKU, and Sankar Natesan, Professor and Head, Department of Genetic Engineering said that appointing members to the convenor committee was a matter discretionary to the syndicate committee and hence, discussing the issue on a senate gathering was unnecessary and would delay essential discussions.  

As Mr. Theenathayalan pointed out that he was a nominee of the Governor, Mr. Natesan responded saying that once members were elected to the syndicate there should not be any discrimination on their positions.