In yet another round of tussle between the Bhagwant Mann-led government and Governor Banwarilal Purohit, the former has decided to stick with the appointment of Dr Satbir Singh Gosal as the Vice-Chancellor of Punjab Agricultural University (PAU) despite objections.
Taking a dig at Purohit’s letter demanding the removal of Dr. Gosal, Agriculture Minister Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal said that the government is in its right to appoint the Vice-Chancellor.
“It seems that the Governor is unaware or has not been informed that the appointment of Vice-Chancellor in PAU is done as per the Haryana and Punjab Agricultural Universities Act, 1970. This is not done as per the norms of the University Grants Commission. , Since there is no irregularity in his appointment, the VC will not be removed.
Yesterday, the governor sent a letter to Chief Minister Mann, asking him to remove the vice-chancellor “as he was illegally appointed and the charge was handed over to the administrative secretary of the agriculture department”.
The Governor, ex-officio vice-chancellor of the universities of the state universities, had also asked Mann to approach the department concerned for appointment of the vice-chancellor in consultation with him.
Elaborating on the government’s conflicting view on the issue, the chief minister is likely to send a reply to the governor soon, sources said.
Dhaliwal argued that the Vice-Chancellor was never appointed in the past in consultation with the Chancellor, but was selected by the PAU’s board of directors. “We are firm on our stand. Go back We have asked Dr. Gosal to start working on heat resistant crop varieties while moving towards sustainable agriculture. He is the best choice for this position. He can make a huge contribution in bringing about another agricultural revolution,” the minister said.
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