Probe ordered into Periyar varsity violations

2-member committee to submit report within 2 months

The Higher Education Department has ordered a probe into complaints regarding appointment and procedures in Periyar University, Salem.

The Government Order has listed 13 different procedural lapses and named nearly a dozen persons who violated the norms. The department has formed a two-member committee comprising Additional Secretary and IAS officer S. Palanisamy and Joint secretary M. Ilango Henry Dass to look into the complaints.

As per the complaints, the university failed to follow the UGC norms in the appointment of director of physical education and it violated the 200-point roster in the appointment of a librarian and the PE director. It had also appointed T. Periasami, an unqualified person, as head of Tamil department. He allegedly submitted fake certificates and the university nominated him to the syndicate, superseding many seniors.

Mr. Periasami was also nominated to committees entrusted with filling vacancies of assistant professors in government arts and sciences colleges affiliated to the university. The university had appointed two other non-teaching staff in administrative positions, violating norms.

The department said 18 students had paid money to be admitted to the university against all norms of admission process. It had also violated norms in procuring software for its computer science department. Fake receipts for around ₹1.30 crore were prepared by the librarian and passed off as payment towards NAAC process and the rights of SC, ST members had been routinely denied. Also there were violations in appointment of syndicate members and Dalits were sidelined in the election to the senate. All these complaints, along with UGC’s ban on distance education programme of the university, would be investigated, the department’s G.O. said.

The committee must complete its probe within two months and provide a detailed report to the department besides offering solutions to prevent such acts in the future, said D. Karthikeyan, Higher Education Secretary.