HP High Court stays order assigning HPU Vice-Chancellor’s duties to Dean, Registrar
SHIMLA — The Himachal Pradesh High Court has kept in abeyance an order assigning the duties of the Vice-Chancellor of Himachal Pradesh University (HPU) to the Dean of Studies, Prof. B.K. Shivram, and Registrar Smt. Jyoti Rana, HPAS, during the Vice-Chancellor’s foreign tour, holding that the arrangement could not have been made under the relevant provision of the University Act.
Justice Sandeep Sharma passed the interim order while hearing a petition filed by Pro Vice-Chancellor Prof. Rajinder Verma against the university.
The court observed that Verma had been appointed Pro Vice-Chancellor for a three-year term through an office order dated June 3, 2023, and had assumed charge on June 7, 2023. It noted that, in the absence of a successor, he continued to hold office under the proviso to Section 12-D(2) of the Act.
The court further noted that notifications issued on June 7, 2023, requiring matters placed before the Vice-Chancellor to be routed through the Pro Vice-Chancellor, were not being followed by the university after the expiry of Verma’s tenure. He was also not being invited to meetings of the university’s statutory bodies and authorities, despite continuing to hold office.
Observing that the Act contained no provision debarring a Pro Vice-Chancellor who continued in office from performing the duties attached to the post, the court held that the assignment of the Vice-Chancellor’s duties to the Dean of Studies and the Registrar could not have been made under Section 12-D(2).
The court granted the university two weeks to file its reply and directed that the impugned office order remain in abeyance until the next hearing. It further ordered that Verma continue to discharge the duties of Pro Vice-Chancellor in the same manner as before the completion of his tenure on June 6, 2023.
The court clarified that its interim order would not prevent the university from initiating the process, if any, for appointing a Pro Vice-Chancellor in accordance with the University Act.
The matter will be taken up for further hearing on the next date fixed by the court.
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