The Supreme Court on Friday deferred to October 6 the hearing on the ongoing row over the appointment of vice-chancellors to state universities in Bengal, amid a continuing deadlock between chief minister Mamata Banerjee and governor C.V. Ananda Bose, the chancellor of the universities.
A bench comprising Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi briefly heard attorney-general R. Venkataramani, for the governor, and senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, for the state government, and suggested both sides submit written notes highlighting their “reservations” on certain names.
Though both lawyers suggested that appointments could proceed for candidates whose names had consensus, the bench declined, saying the court would not allow “piecemeal” appointments.
“Hon’ble Justice Lalit’s committee is unanimous on appointments to 12 universities. If both parties
agree, we can order an appointment today. But this piecemeal job will not be good,” Justice Kant said.
Instead, the court asked both sides to submit written notes identifying areas of disagreement, which would be considered after the Durga Puja festivities.
Earlier, on August 1, the court had tentatively cleared Sonali Chakravarti Banerjee as VC of Rabindra Bharati University, but withheld approval for 16 other universities.
The court had directed the search-cum-selection committee headed by former Chief Justice of India U.U. Lalit to give final recommendations on the remaining contentious names. The committee was also asked to assess the second and third preference candidates proposed by the governor.
The committee, constituted on July 8, 2024, was formed under Article 142 to resolve the prolonged impasse between the governor and chief minister over VC appointments to 34 state universities.
The Supreme Court had then stated it would have the final say in case of any unresolved disagreement, warning that non-compliance by either party would not be entertained.