It is a season of revolts and rebellion in Tamil Nadu. The State which saw revolts in the DMDK and the TMC over the leadership’s decision to align with the PWF is witnessing a rebellion with a difference. Five members of the high-power governing council of Kalakshetra Foundation in Chennai under the Ministry of Culture have revolted against the management’s decision to cancel the appointment of a candidate belonging to the backward community as deputy director and to bring in a person suggested by a top authority of the Foundation.
The move by the Kalakshetra Foundation to revoke the appointment of M Sankaranarayanan, a backward community candidate as deputy director and to appoint a person belonging to the higher caste is expected to put the Union Government in the defensive in days to come.
Sankaranarayanan, an experienced and honest official of the Tamil Nadu Government who was selected for appointment as the deputy director of Kalakshetra by the institution’s promotion/selection committee, finds himself in a no-man’s land as the Kalakshetra cancelled the appointment after issuing the letter of appointment. Sankaranarayanan had submitted his application through his employers, the department of tourism, culture and religious endowment, Government of Tamil Nadu.
The selection committee headed by Pankaj Raj, joint secretary in the Ministry of culture, which interviewed Sankaranar-ayanan found him ideal for the post of deputy director in Kalakshetra. “The Promotion-/selection committee found Mr Sankaranarayanan fit to be taken on deputation for the post of deputy director, Kalakshetra Foundation and recommended his selection for the post of deputy director, Kalakshetra Founda-tion on deputation for a period of three years,” said the proceedings of the departmental promotion/selection committee which was held on July 23, 2015, a copy of which is with the Pioneer.
Sankaranarayanan, who received the appointment order, got himself relieved from the parent department and reached Kalakshetra to report for duty. By that time, Priyadarshini Govind, director of Kalakshetra Foundation, who was also a member of the committee which selected Sankaranarayanan, got his appointment cancelled and initiated a move to appoint a person suggested by the “top authority” of the Kalakshetra.
Another committee headed by Sanjiv Mittal, joint secretary, Ministry of culture, was constituted for selecting the person as desired by the “top authority” and it appointed V Srinivasa-raghavan, an under secretary, department of personnel and training, as deputy director. Strangely, Sankarana-rayana who was selected in the interview held in 2015 did not find place in the list of candidates invited by the Kalakshetra for the second interview.
The Madras High Court has come to the help of Sankaranarayanan who approa-ched it with his grievances. Justice T Raja, in his order while hearing a petition submitted by Sankaranar-ayanan last week has stayed the impugned notification published in the employment news calling for fresh application for the post of deputy director.