‘UGC will be useless if its rules aren’t followed’

New Delhi: University Grants Commission (UGC) would be a useless body if its regulations are not followed by universities, the Supreme Court said on Tuesday, voicing concern over a string of cases in which higher education institutions sought exemption from such guidelines.

A bench of Chief Justice JS Khehar and Justice DY CHandrachud made this comment while it was hearing an appeal filed by Lucknow-based Integral University challenging the HC order ousting its vice-chancellor because he was not a distinguished academician as is one required to be under the UGC rules.

Before the top court the university said it was a minority institution and was, therefore, under no obligation to follow the standards. Also, it said the university had not adopted the regulations, which is necessary as per an earlier SC verdict. “If the regulations are not adopted then we are not required to appoint a V-C as per the rules,” advocate Vikas Singh told the bench. He said a university needs has to conform to the regulations while appointing teachers.

The court, however, disagreed with his argument and said it was willing to take a re-look at the two-judge verdict that gave this liberty to universities. “Qualification of a head of the university has a bearing on the standards of the institution. Power to regulate standards is not just restricted to teaching staff but also its head,” Justice Chandrachud said.

What is left to the management is selection, it said, fixing Wednesday to hear the matter when a larger bench would be sitting. An outcome in this matter is bound to have a bearing on Aligarh Muslim University’s (AMU) case which is contesting for autonomy .