Congress leader Rahul Gandhi recently stirred a controversy concerning the vice-chancellors of reputed universities after he claimed during a campaign that they are picked solely based on affiliation instead of merit and qualification.
Reacting to his allegations, at least 181 academics, including former and current vice-chancellors, penned an open letter on social media platform X. In the post, they accused Rahul Gandhi of spreading falsehoods and defaming the Office of the Vice Chancellors regarding the appointment process for university heads. They are now seeking legal action against Rahul Gandhi.
Shedding light on the controversy, NewsX exclusively spoke to Professor Sunil Pareek, Dean, NIFTEM, Kundli. He is one of the signatories of VCs letter to Rahul Gandhi.
When asked if Rahul Gandhi crossed the line by questioning the merit of VCs, Professor Sunil Pareek told NewsX, “We have taken this statement from his public speech given during the election campaign and he has questioned all the vice-chancellors and also, he has questioned the system. But to let you know that it is not true. He must be aware of how the Vice Chancellors are appointed, and if he claims that all Vice Chancellors belong to the same organization or some ideology, that is also wrong.”
Professor Sunil Pareek said, “One must know state governments come into play when the Vice Chancellors are appointed, and in all the state universities there is a committee which is chaired by someone. It is then finally checked by the governor along with the consultation of the Chief Minister.”
Pareek further shared, “If you see, some states are ruled by BJP, and some are ruled by the opposition. So, how can one say that all the Vice Chancellors belong to RSS, BJP or activists. Not only this, he also said that they are not related to the education system. To let you know that there are some qualifications required to become the Vice Chancellor and also there is a procedure that needs to be followed. This statement is totally wrong. He could have pin-pointed to one or two names but slamming all the VCs is wrong.”
The NIFTEM, Kundli Dean also claimed giving such statements for political fame is harmful and it puts a bad impression on students.
Sunil Pareek then shed light on the selection process of VCs clearing the air and how transparent it is. “Even in the central universities, or in the institutes of national importance where very stringent system is there, interview committees are there, open advertisements are floated, and after a proper procedure, it is looked by the governor or the appointing committee.”
He continued, “There are no changes after BJP came into power. You can say that all VCs don’t have the capability then the question is that if they are so, then how are the VCs, the fellows of the various of the national and international academy have the name and fame at the international level, they are the consultants, even the National Education Policy (NEP) is now taking place. All these are the changes which have taken place. Therefore, the question asked about the capability of the Vice Chancellors.
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When asked how he sees the politics being played over undermining institutions, especially in this case universities, Professor Sunil Pareek opined, “Some universities conduct students election which also brings in the politics within the institutes. Sometimes faculties are involved in it, but in most of the universities and institutes, there are no student elections even also they are not bothered, including IIT, INI, IIM. Hence, there is no question of the politics.”
He added, “However, when the VC is appointed he represents the university. Nowadays, you can see how many universities got the NAAC a+ and NAAC A++. Previously there are very few universities that were graded with the same but now things have changed. This clearly shows that there is no politics, there is a proper process, and they are working well in the universities. Hence University Vice Chancellors cannot be questioned and the education system should be freed from the political comments.
Professor Pareek also expressed his views on how the students are impacted when a leader like Rahul Gandhi makes such controversial statements. “Rahul Gandhi should understand that he is one of the biggest and respected leaders of the opposition and him making such comments adversely affects the morals of the students along with the faculty. This also leads to politics in the system and therefore, the education system should be kept away from all this.”
Pareek added, “Also, we can see how the country has developed in science and technology, we are internationalising our education system. And when we question such things- it affects the universities.
When asked why 180+ chancellors decided to write this letter, Pareek said, “When the vice-chancellors and the faculty saw Rahul Gandhi’s tweet, then they thought we must be opposed because universities are the autonomous bodies. Despite their stature, they were questioned and asked whether they were capable or not. It was then decided by the vice-chancellors that a letter must be written.” He added, “Not only Rahul Gandhi ji but none of the leaders should comment on the capabilities of the vice-chancellors.”
A group of esteemed university vice-chancellors and academics penned an open letter, firmly rejecting Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s unfounded accusations made during the Lok Sabha election campaign.
The letter, signed by 181 present and past vice-chancellors, as well as heads of regulatory bodies like the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE), urges for appropriate measures to be taken against Rahul Gandhi.
The open letter stated that the process by which “vice-chancellors are selected is characterised by stringent, transparent rigorous procedure grounded on values of meritocracy, scholarly distinction and integrity.”
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