Madras Varsitys Syndicate election kicks up row

CHENNAI: Representations made to the Registrar-in-charge of the University of Madras have now raked up a controversy regarding the voting rights of two members of the Senate in the elections to the varsity’s Syndicate scheduled for Friday. The elections had been arranged to fill six vacancies to the Syndicate, which is the executive body of the University. About 120 members would vote to elect the six candidates. However, members of the Madras University Teachers Association (MUTA) and a nominated member of the Senate have now raised an issue about recent decisions made by the University regarding the voting list for the hustings. According to the letter written by members of MUTA, the varsity’s decision to allow the current Director of Collegiate Education to vote in the elections was ‘bad in law.’ While the DCE became an automatic ex-officio member of the Senate through provisions of the Madras University Act, the post was currently held by Joint Secretary of Higher Education as an additional charge. “Such a person holding additional charge or in-charge but not a full time DCE is not eligible to vote,” the letter said, requesting for an amendment to the list of voting members published by the University for elections. Similarly, T Subash Chandra Bose, a nominated member of the Chennai Corporation to the University in October 2010, was told in a communication that his membership to the Senate had ceased as a fresh Council had been elected and it had to select a new nominee. However, citing several provisions of the Madras University Act, Bose had written to the varsity that nominees of the State Assembly had to relinquish the membership only once a new house was elected. “The tenure of the Corporation’s nominee is for three years. So my tenure ends only in October 2013,” he said, adding that the action to remove him from the voting list was taken even before the Council could nominate a new person. Therefore, he has now requested immediate reinstatement into Senate. The representations gain significance owing to the fact that 12 contestants are now in the fray for six vacancies. Even a single vote can decide who gets elected and who does not, a source in the varsity said. However, the Registrar-in-charge of the University could not be contacted for comments even after repeated attempts.