SGU admission committee accused of non-cooperation

SURAT, July 5: A four-men inquiry committee of South Gujarat University has accused the centralised admissions committee of non-cooperation....

SURAT, July 5: A four-men inquiry committee of South Gujarat University has accused the centralised admissions committee of non-cooperation.

The team, set up to probe into alleged irregularities in admissions to Bachelor of Education colleges in the region, includes Prof Girish Rana, H H Patel, Dipak Afrikawala and Gaurang Vaid On Saturday, the team visited V R Bhakt Shikshan Mahavidyala at Kamrej but returned none the wiser, reportedly when principal Dr Ashwini Kapadia refused to part with certain details, saying she would first secure permission from centralised admission committee chairman Prof Suryakant Shah. The panel had wanted to know how many were admitted and how many rejected due to postal delays.

Shah, who is also South Gujarat College and University Teachers’ Association president, heads the centralised admission committee while Kamrej BEd college principal is the convener. Principals of four other BEd colleges are ex-officio members of this committee set up four years ago, apparently to help South Gujarat students and keep track of admission from one centre only.

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The tussle between the inquiry committee and the admission committee originates from Shah’s rivalry with vice-chancellor Ashwin Kapadia. Both are engaged in a proxy war, using centralised admissions as the weapon.

While the vice-chancellor maintains the probe panel was constituted after a series of complaints against admissions to the five BEd colleges, Shah claims the admission system is transparent and allegations against admission committee members are deliberate to defame them.

Shah says when he heard of the probe panel, he offered to seal all admission records, but the vice-chancellor did not evince interest because he is pursuing a different agenda and seeks to fulfill it through the probe panel. He says he was ready to co-operate “though the probe panel is illegal.”

The vice-chancellor has stopped admissions, but classes have started and the decision will affect students, Shah points out, adding the purpose of the probe is to harass certain individuals.

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