Delhi: Election Commission nod to appoint VCs in three universities

NEW DELHI: The government got the nod of the Election Commission to appoint vice-chancellors in three central universities. The ministry of human resource development in March wrote to the commission seeking its approval to go ahead with the appointments. The EC, while giving its approval on Friday, said the move won’t amount to poll violation.
The government got the nod to appoint the new VCs of Jamia Millia Islamia, Delhi, Mahatma Gandhi Antarrashtriya Hindi Vishwavidyalaya, Wardha, and Mahatma Gandhi Central University in Motihari, Bihar.According to a senior ministry official, the government will now send the names to the President, who is the visitor of the central universities, for his approval.
The ministry will now send the names of the three shortlisted candidates for the top job at Jamia, after its chief Talat Ahmad quit as VC last year, said the official. The shortlisted candidates are Najma Akhtar of National Institute of Educational Planning and Administration, Furqan Qamar, secretarygeneral of Association of Indian Universities, and S M Ishtiaque, a professor at Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi. Government sources, Akhtar is the front runner and if her name is selected she will be the first woman to hold the top job at Jamia.