Banwarilal Purohit defends appointment of Anna University vice-chancellor

Chennai: Tamil Nadu Governor Banwarilal Purohit on Saturday defended his decision to appoint M. K. Surappa as vice chancellor of Anna University and “requested” (his critics) that “politics be kept out” and “unnecessary mud slinging avoided” over the appointment.

Responding to critics, who questioned the appointment of Surappa who hails from Karnataka, in the wake of Cauvery dispute, the Raj Bhavan defended the choice in a four-page statement issued to the press here on Saturday.

The Governor said, “the whole process was fair and transparent. The welfare of the Anna University and Engineering Colleges affiliated to the university, faculty and the students was kept in mind when making the selection. Since there has been no extraneous interference in the selection process and since the choice of the Vice-Chancellor was done entirely in accordance with the statute, it is requested that politics be kept out and unnecessary mud-slinging avoided.”