The Supreme Court today said that a plea seeking ouster of the Aligarh Muslim University vice chancellor be heard along with a petition on its minority status pending before another bench, noting that AMU may claim that its process to select the VC cannot be "hijacked" as it is a "minority institution".
A bench headed by Chief Justice T S Thakur, which has been critical of AMU's selection process in appointing Lt Gen (Retd) Zameeruddin Shah as the Vice Chancellor, said that the issue of the varsity being a "minority institution" may crop up while deciding the petition seeking ouster of Shah.
"The University Grants Commission (UGC) may prescribe the qualification for the vice chancellor, but it cannot decide the selection process as the university may claim that it is a minority institution and hence its process cannot be hijacked...
"It will be better if the present petition is also dealt with by the bench which is hearing the petition on minority status of the university," the bench, also comprising Justices D Y Chandrachud and L Nageswar Rao, said.
The court did not allow submission of Prashant Bhushan, appearing for AMU almuni Syed Abrar Ahmed who is seeking ouster of Shah as the VC, that the instant case was unrelated to the matter relating to the minority status of the university.
Referring to UGC regulations on pre-requisites for being the VC, Bhushan said there was no question of AMU "adopting or de-adopting the regulations" and the appointment of Shah was not as per the norms and hence, it needed to be quashed.
At the end of the three-hour-long hearing, the bench said it will refer the instant matter to another three-judge bench headed by Justice J S Khehar which is already hearing the appeal of AMU challenging the Allahabad High Court verdict divesting the varsity of its minority tag.
"The present petition will be heard on January 10, 2017 along with other petition," the bench said.
Earlier, the apex court had taken exception to the submission of AMU that an eminent person can be appointed its vice chancellor, saying did it mean that "a singer, a sportsman or a musician" can also selected for the coveted assignment.
AMU had referred to the appointment of Vice President Hamid Ansari, a career diplomat, as its VC saying that he being an eminent person was appointed to head it during 2000-02.
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Earlier, the Centre had said it did not take a "rigid" stand in appointment and had already forwarded three short-listed names to the President for approval as the varsity has kept the UGC regulations on the issue at abeyance.
The Ministry of Human Resource Development (HRD) had said that three names were forwarded to the President under the relevant provisions of the Aligarh Muslim University Act.
The President appointed one of the short-listed persons as the VC, the ministry said, adding the varsity is yet to adopt the regulations of the UGC.
The reply of the HRD Ministry was filed in response to a plea of an alumni of the university seeking a direction to quash appointment of Lt Gen (Retd) Zameeruddin Shah as the VC.
"The ministry did not take a rigid stand at the time of forwarding the panel to the visitor in May 2012 as the post of the VC was vacant and was required to be filled up without delay," the ministry said, adding that the post was filled up in May 2012 with the approval of competent authority that is visitor, who is the President, on the "basis of panel recommended by the court as per the relevant statutes of AMU Act".
The appointment of Shah as the VC of AMU on May 11, 2012 was challenged on the ground that according to the UGC regulations, the VC ought to have worked for at least 10 years as a professor in a university or on an equivalent post in a research or academic institute.
The petitioner had argued before the high court that the regulations -- which pertained to minimum qualifications and maintenance of standards in higher education -- had become binding on AMU when it had adopted these on December 6, 2010.
The ministry had said that the UGC regulations on Minimum Qualifications for Appointment of Teachers and Other Academic Staff in Universities and Colleges and Measures for Maintenance of Standards in Higher Education, 2010 are mandatory for central universities.
"All the central universities should adopt these regulations without fail and as early as possible in order to ensure maintenance of standards in higher education," it said.
