Calcutta, May 25 :    Calcutta, May 25:  The party that swears by Marx still rules Bengal's universities, marks don't. So, what's new? Nothing. Except that Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee took over with the slogan of setting things right where they weren't. In education, for instance. But one of the first things his party has done even before he has spent the first month in power is to select for the Jadavpur University engineer's post - equivalent to that of a reader - a candidate with inferior academic records to at least seven other applicants'. There were 16 applicants and the selected person was the only one who had second-division marks in every examination he wrote. The selection has created a controversy in the university, recently given a star-grading by the National Assessment Accreditation Council. Despite having a better academic record than most other state-controlled universities in Bengal, Jadavpur, admit officials and teachers, has had a poor record when it comes to 'inappropriate selection of candidates'. The selected person is believed to be close to a powerful CPM minister who was elected from a Calcutta constituency and the vice-chancellor of a university who taught previously at Jadavpur. The person who landed the job passed his class XII with second-division marks in 1972 before passing his graduation - in civil engineering - in 1977, also with a second class. University officials say a person getting a second class in engineering is quite rare. He was working as the university engineer in the Midnapore-based Vidyasagar University and this job now gives him the opportunity to stay in Calcutta. One of the seven better-qualified candidates whose application was rejected is working in the same university and was even officiating in the post for which applications were invited. He had a first class in his graduation. Here is a comparison of the qualifications of the candidates. Selected person: second class in HS and BE. No post-graduation Rejected persons: First class in BE and post-graduation; First class in B.Sc (engineering) and in post-graduation from Colombia University; First class in graduation and post-graduation; First class in BE, MBA; First class in graduation and post-graduation; First class in graduation and post-graduation; First-class graduate, officiating in same post. The university's standing committee - comprising the vice-chancellor, registrar and experts - met 15 of the applicants on April 20 and its recommendation came up before the executive council on Wednesday. The council meeting, on seeing the recommendation, turned stormy. But it was passed by a vote - most council members are also members of various CPM-controlled teachers' and non-teaching staff fronts - despite several notes of dissent. Higher education minister Satyasadhan Chakraborty refused comment, referring the matter to vice-chancellor Ashok Nath Basu. But Basu said: 'I don't comment on these issues. Please ask the university registrar.' Registrar Rajat Bandyopadhyay was not available.