The opposition –Congress and Indian National Lok Dal—on Friday lashed out at the BJP-JJP led Haryana Government for interfering in the recruitment of teaching and non-teaching staff of Universities in the state.
During the first day of winter session of State Assembly, former Chief Minister and Leader of Opposition Bhupinder Singh Hooda alongwith the Congress legislators and INLD’s lone MLA Abhay Chautala accused the State Government of undermining the autonomy of the higher educational institutions in Haryana.
During the calling attention motion on the issue, the opposition demanded withdrawal of the decision to recruit teaching and non-teaching staff in Universities through Haryana Public Service Commission and Haryana Staff Selection Commission.
Leader of Opposition Bhupinder Singh Hooda said that the move is against the national education policy and will undermine the autonomy of Universities.
Seeking a reply from the Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar on the issue, Hooda said that the move will allow back door entry of non-deserving candidates on various posts in Universities. Institutions like HPSC and HSSC which are already under scrutiny due to recruitment scam should not be allowed to do recruitments in Universities, he said.
Slamming the Government over the recruitment scams, the former Chief Minister also said that the government should have mercy on youth. People will come on roads to protest and Congress will also join them if the decision of recruitment in Universities through HPSC and HSSC is not withdrawn, he added.
Hooda also accused the Chief Minister of giving a wrong statement on the floor of the House during the monsoon session of State Assembly and assuring that the government will not interfere in Universities.
Later, the Chief Minister clarified that the statement was made in reference to the anti-copying bill which was brought in the State Assembly and not related to recruitments in the Universities.
Khattar also said like earlier, the appointment of Vice-Chancellors in universities will be done through the Governor, who is the Chancellor of all the Universities.
On Haryana Private Universities (Amendment) Bill tabled in the Assembly, the Chief Minister clarified that even earlier, the Registrar is appointed by the government. Besides this, the appointment of Group-B, Non-Teaching, Group C and D and Assistant Professor will be done as per the new provisions, he said.
During the debate, the INLD’s lone MLA Abhay Chautala alleged that the State Government wants to accommodate its own people in the Universities and thus, the procedure of recruitments has been changed.
He said that the State Government has stripped the Universities of their power of recruitment.
The government cannot be trusted as it had appointed Prof BK Kuthiala as chairman of the Haryana Higher Education Council despite him facing charges of corruption, fraud and irregularities in recruitments, Chautala said.
Congress MLAs BB Batra, Jagbir Malik, Raghuvir Singh Kadian also severely criticized the State Government for changing the rules for recruitments in Universities.
Earlier during the debate, the Speaker Gian Chand Gupta and Congress MLA Geeta Bhukkal engaged in a heated argument after the former did not allow her to ask a supplementary question. Former Education Minister Bhukkal even rushed into the well of the House to register her protest. Following repeated warnings from the Speaker to name Bhukkal for the entire session, LoP Hooda rushed to her and asked to return to her seat.
The Speaker informed the House that the Chief Minister will give a reply on the issue of recruitment in Universities later.
In his reply to the calling attention motion, the Education Minister Kanwar Pal said that the University Administration was mainly engaged in the recruitment of staff and not much attention was paid to academic reforms and research. Faculty plays an important role in the building of an institution. The main commitment of the State Government is to make available the prescribed number of faculty in colleges and universities, he said.
Referring to the letter to VCs of Universities by the State Government, he said that the directions issued by the State Government on November 8 are self-explanatory and do not affect the autonomy of the university in any way. This step will provide relief to the university from the intricacies involved in the selection process, he claimed.
The Minister also said it is clear in these instructions that the Vice Chancellor is involved in all the process of selection. He will chair the selection committee and the committees have been made more comprehensive. Even in the search cum selection committee for the appointment of Registrar, Finance Officer, Controller of Examinations and Librarian, the chairmanship of the Vice-Chancellor has been suggested. HPSC and HSSC, wherever necessary, will conduct a written examination and the selection committee will be headed by the Vice-Chancellor. Two academic experts in the concerned field will be nominated by the HPSC; one academic specialist to be nominated by the Haryana State Council of Higher Education and one specialist to be nominated by the Chancellor, he said.
This decision will not affect the essential qualifications and norms prescribed by the UGC, he added.