"Judicial Rebuke: Kerala Government's Interference Leads to Supreme Court Overturning Kannur University VC Re-Appointment"

In a landmark verdict handed down on Thursday, the Supreme Court annulled the re-appointment of Dr. Gopinath Ravindran as Vice Chancellor of Kannur University in Kerala. The court cited the “unwarranted intervention of the State Government,” asserting that the Kerala Governor, acting as Chancellor, had effectively relinquished statutory powers in the re-appointment process.

The decision was fueled by a press release from Kerala Raj Bhavan, revealing that the re-appointment initiative originated from the Chief Minister and the Higher Education Minister. Despite the Chancellor officially issuing the re-appointment notification, the court deemed the decision tainted by external influences.

A panel consisting of Chief Justice DY Chandrachud, Justice JB Pardiwala, and Justice Manoj Misra entertained an appeal challenging a prior Kerala High Court ruling that upheld the VC’s re-appointment. Justice Pardiwala, delivering the judgment, addressed four pivotal questions:

Is re-appointment permissible in a tenure post?
Does the upper age limit of 60 years, as stipulated in Section 10(9) of the Kannur University Act, apply to a four-year reappointment?
Must re-appointment follow the same process as the initial VC appointment, including the formation of a selection panel?
Did the Chancellor abdicate or surrender statutory reappointment powers?

The court’s responses were as follows:

Re-appointment is allowable in a tenure post.
The age limit of 60 years does not apply to a re-appointment.
Re-appointment need not adhere to the same process as a fresh appointment.
The court sided with the appellant on the fourth question, asserting that the Chancellor had ceded statutory reappointment authority.

Justice Pardiwala emphasized that the decision was based on the Chancellor’s abdication of statutory powers, not the suitability of the candidate. The court maintained that only the statutory authority could wield such power, and any external interference would compromise the decision’s legality.

This ruling echoes a similar case in October 2022, where the Supreme Court nullified the Vice Chancellor’s re-appointment at Calcutta University due to the West Bengal State Government’s encroachment on the Chancellor’s powers.

The legal proceedings began when a single judge in the High Court dismissed a writ filed by elected members of the Senate and Academic Council of Kannur University. They argued that the re-appointment violated statutory provisions, citing the age limit stipulated in Section 10(9) of the Kannur University Act. The High Court, however, relied on Section 10(10) to support the eligibility of a VC for re-appointment, as long as it adhered to a maximum of two terms.

Case Title: Dr Premchandran Keezhoth & Anr v The Chancellor Kannur University & Ors | C.A. No. 7700/2023