Kerala HC dismisses appeal against Kannur VC re-appointment

The Kerala High Court on Wednesday dismissed an appeal against a single judge order upholding the re-appointment of Gopinath Ravindran as the Vice Chancellor (VC) of Kannur University.

A bench of Chief Justice S Manikumar and Justice Shaji P Chaly rejected the plea moved by a member each from the varsity’s Senate and Academic Council against the single judge’s order of December 15 last year.

Senior government pleader V Manu, who appeared for the state in the matter, confirmed dismissal of the appeal.

The judgment is yet to be made available.

The December 15, 2021 order had come on the same petitioners’ plea seeking quashing of a November 23, 2021 notification by which Ravindran was re-appointed as the VC.

While rejecting the plea, the single judge had said that there was no violation of any statutory provision in the re-appointment of Ravindran as the VC.

The court, in the December 15, 2021 order, had said that re-appointment was different from appointment and the procedure adopted for the latter need not be followed when re-appointing someone.

The petitioners, had contended before the single judge, that a person can hold office of VC only till the age of 60 years and Ravindran, born on December 19, 1960, was over age at the time of his second appointment.

The petitioners had also contended that after the expiry of the four year term of a VC, there was no clause for extension and the only option was appointment.

The single judge had rejected the contentions.