The appointment of senior IAS officer Rohit Kansal (IAS:1995:AGMUT) as “Honorary Special Fellow” at the country’s prestigious Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) has sparked a controversy, with the teachers’ association of the university questioning the decision on Tuesday. The Jawaharlal Nehru University Teachers’ Association (JNUTA) claims it was done without the approval of the Executive Council in violation of its statutes.
The controversy erupted after the university announced Kansal’s appointment on its official social media handle X, saying university Vice Chancellor Santishree Dhulipudi Pandit is delighted to announce the appointment of Rohit Kansal as Honorary Special Fellow at the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Centre for Security & Strategic Studies at the School of International Studies of the JNU.
Kansal is currently serving as Additional Secretary in the Ministry of Textiles under the Government of India.
The teachers’ body claims that there is no such position in JNU, and if the university intended to create the post, it is the Executive Council (EC) that has the sole authority to do it and appoint someone to that position in the university.
A press release issued by JNUTA said that without the approval of the EC, the announcement of the appointment would be illegal.
The association now demands the vice chancellor to come out clean on the issue and explain how she bestowed powers upon herself to make this appointment, flouting all relevant statutes.
The JNUTA dubbed the appointment illegal and demanded immediate withdrawal of the announcement regarding Kansal’s appointment.
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