Governor H.R. Bhardwaj says he will not give his assent to the RGUHS Amendment Bill 2013.
It’s a Bill that the Assembly has passed but Governor H.R. Bhardwaj has declared he will not give his assent to. The RGUHS Amendment Bill 2013 aims at rooting out corruption in the university syndicate by putting more government representatives in the body. Is that a solution to the problem of corruption that has come to haunt RGUHS?
Considering the number of scams and scandals that have rocked the Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences over the years, the government on Tuesday passed the RGUÂHS Amendment Bill in the Legislative AssemÂbly to root out corruption in the university and bring in more transparency in its affairs.
Although Governor H.R. Bhardwaj has opposed the bill from the start, even issuing a statement saying he will not give it his assent, Medical Education Minister, Sharan Prakash Patil says he may have no choice but to give in at this point.
“The bill is being discussed in the Legislative Council now. The GoverÂnor’s assent is mandatory and he must provide it,” he said from Belgaum where the winter session of the legislature is on, adding, “Hopefully, it will all fall into place. The amended bill is being passÂed to safeguard the interests of the students. A lot of what the university does is not in tune with transparency and complaints about corruption have been rampant.”
If everything goes as planned, the government will soon have the authority to issue directions to the RGUHS whenever requirÂed, which Dr Paril feels is essential, especially in its financial operations. With the university having over Rs 600 crore at its disposal, there have been many cases of misappropriation of funds, according to him. “They were willing to spend Rs 140 crore on an automation project. When have you ever heard of something like this happening? It’s totally unnecessary and the money is being swindled because there are a lot of vested interests at play here,” he maintained.
Asked if CM SiddaraÂmaÂiah’s suggestion that bills should be passed only after thorough discussion was an indication of his lack of support for the RGUHS Amendment Bill, the minister replied in the negative. “That was not the case at all, the CM is very positive about this bill,” he insisted.
“I’m surprised that even when we try to do the right thing, it is badly portrayed. Nominating government members on the university syndicate will bring in more accountability and transparency,” he added.
Next: Opposition walks out
Opposition walks out
Belgaum: The RGUHS (Amendment) Bill 2013 was passed by the legislative council amidst a walkout by the opposition on Thursday. Although medical education minister, Dr Sharan Prakash Patil agreed to make some key changes suggested by the opposition before the Bill was passed, they were not pacifiÂed.
They insisted the government give up the idea of nominating more members to the University Syndicate and Senate as inclusion of more ex-officio members would not improve functioning. Ex–CM and BJP leader, Sadananda Gowda said officials of the education department hardly attended any meetings due to other commitments.
“The university should have members with excellent academic backgrounds capable of playing a good role,” he said. M.C. Nanaiah said many universities failed to function professionally and blamed the rising Congress and BJP lobbies for their lack of credibility.
While some universities flouted rules in the appointment of members to various bodies, others appointed members who were totally unfit for the posts , he charged. Other leaders like Mr Narayanaswamy, Mr Shanappa and Mr Arun Shahpurkar also objected to the nomination of more members on the RGUHS syndicate by the government.
Next: ‘Bill will curtail autonomy, not remove corruption’
‘Bill will curtail autonomy, not remove corruption’
While the government claims it is keen on pushing through the RGUHS Amendment Bill to set right everything that is wrong with it, some believe it will only succeed in curtailing its
autonomy. “Will bringing greater government presence on the RGUHS syndicate help in curbing irregularities in its affairs or will the seat of corruption simply change hands?” they ask.
The move to nominate six members to the syndicate, all from political backgrounds, has met with the most opposition. “RGUHS is one of the most prestigious universities of the state, but the government doesn’t seem to be thinking about maintaining its educational standards,” say critics.
Needless to say, the RGUHS syndicate has opposed the bill, terming the government’s decision unilateral. “They should have consulted us first,” said Dr Jaykrishna, syndicate member, RGUHS. “The only thing this will do is curtail our autonomy, not do away with corruption. I don't know how this will work out in the long run,” he adds.
In November this year Governor H.R. Bharadwaj himself took a definitive stand against the bill saying he could reject it if the changes he suggested were not incorporated in it. The Governor wanted medical experts on the university syndicate and not the higher education secretary, who he said had nothing to do with it.
Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) leader, Ravikumar agrees with the Governor’s view that only members with relevant qualifications should be nominated to the syndicate by the government. “The university needs transparency in all its processes, conducting exams, granting affiliation and general administration. This is definitely lacking.
Government servants, who know little about the background of the university or what it does, are certainly not qualified to be part of its syndicate. I have been pushing for student representation instead. They are the ones who know the real problems and having them aboard could ensure transparency,” he says.
Next: ‘Autonomy for what? to be corrupt?’
‘Autonomy for what? to be corrupt?’
Dr B.K. Chandrashekhar
Should RGUHS be accountable to the government? I think so. I don’t want to start off by being critical of the RGUHS Amendment Bill because it’s okay to make it accountable to the
government in some way. There is no harm in having to answer to the government and quite frankÂly, I think their coordination is very important.
There have been arguments that greater government presence on the university syndicate this will curtail its autonomy. But autonomy for what? To make money, to be corrupt and not be accountable? If the six nominees from the government on the syndicate are included within the framework of the RGUHS Act, it cannot curtail its autonomy in any way.
The Karnataka UniversiÂties Act says the government’s six nominees should all be eminent educationists, so there is no escaping that. In most universities the principal secretary of the Department of Higher Education and the commissioner of collegiate education are ex- officio members of their syndicates.
Past governments have done a terrible job of appointing syndicate members. I was especially unhappy about the nominations to VTU and Bangalore University. Ration shop owners, briefless lawyers and full time RSS workers became syndicate members. They have played havoc in Hampi University, which is the pride of the state.
I don’t want to jump into critical mode at the moment, but I do wonder why they don’t institute an inquiry against an officer of the university? Dr Sharan Prakash has made allegations of corruption and misappropriation of funds and believe me, these claims cannot be made lightly on the floor of the House. The government, I’m sure, has good reason for this.
—The writer is Congress leader and former minister
( Source : dc )
Next Story
