Signing you in

This comes days after a controversy broke out over the appointment of its new principal. DU had asked St Stephen’s to “not proceed with the appointment” of Professor Susan Elias as its new principal on the grounds that the committee that chose her was allegedly constituted in violation of UGC regulations.

In the present matter, in a letter dated May 29 to the Chairman of the Governing Body of St Stephen’s College, Registrar Vikas Gupta said it was responding to media reports regarding the proposed absorption of Varghese in the college’s English Department.

The University has argued that the proposal has no basis in existing UGC regulations or University rules. It noted that the UGC, which funds colleges, sanctions substantive teaching posts only at the level of Lecturer or Assistant Professor.

The letter also referred to the ongoing legal challenge to Varghese’s continuation as principal, stating that the grant of another term to him is “in violation of UGC Regulations 2018” and that the matter is currently pending before the Delhi High Court.

Explaining its position, the University said teachers in colleges are appointed as Assistant Professors and subsequently promoted to Associate Professor and Professor through the Career Advancement Scheme (CAS) under the UGC Regulations, 2018.

The Registrar further wrote that neither the UGC Regulations nor any rules approved by the statutory bodies of the University provide for the absorption of an employee or any other person directly as a Professor in a college.

“In view of the above, it is apparent that the absorption of Prof. John Varghese as Professor in the college is in violation of all rules of UGC and University,” the letter stated.

The University then took the position that any recommendation by the Governing Body to this effect would be beyond its powers.

“Accordingly, any such recommendations of the Governing Body is ultra vires and should not be acted upon any further,” the letter said, adding: “You are requested to not proceed with this.”

The University also said that under existing rules, Varghese should be repatriated to his parent institution after the completion of his tenure and would draw pension and other retirement benefits, if any, from that institution alone.

The communication was issued with the approval of the competent authority and copies were marked to the Chairperson and Secretary of the UGC.

The college has been in a long-running institutional conflict with DU over questions of governance and autonomy.

DU had repeatedly challenged the continuation of Prof Varghese in the principal’s post beyond March 2021, and described his extension as “illegal”, “non-statutory”, and “ab initio null and void”. According to the university, UGC rules required a fresh selection process that would involve DU and the nominees of the commission.

St Stephen’s had, on the other hand, maintained that Varghese’s continuation was valid under resolutions passed by the supreme council of the college.