Kerala High Court Declines KTU Vice Chancellor's Interim Plea To Direct All Syndicate Members To Join Meeting

The Kerala High Court on Tuesday (19, August) refused to grant interim relief sought by Dr. Sivaprasad, Vice-Chancellor of APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University (KTU), in a writ petition challenging the repeated absence of key government officials from the university's Syndicate meetings.Justice C.S. Dias, after considering the submissions, observed that the interim relief sought was identical to the main relief, that the Syndicate meeting date had already lapsed, and that the issue was pending before the Supreme Court. The Court concluded that the VC had not satisfied the required conditions for grant of interim relief and accordingly declined the request.The petition, filed by Dr. Sivaprasad, alleged that the persistent abstinence of the Finance Secretary, Higher Education Secretary, and Director of Technical Education from Syndicate meetings had led to an administrative deadlock, severely affecting the disbursal of salaries and pensions to staff and retirees of the University. The VC sought a direction compelling these officials to attend the 66th Syndicate meeting, originally scheduled for August 13, 2025.During the hearing, Senior Counsel for the VC argued that the stalemate had caused “severe financial hardship” to employees and pensioners.Opposing the plea, the State Attorney submitted that the matter had already become infructuous since the 66th Syndicate meeting date had passed. He further pointed out that the Supreme Court, by an order dated August 18, 2025, had appointed a former Supreme Court judge as Chairperson of the Search-cum-Selection Committee to appoint the next Vice-Chancellor of the University, thereby rendering the writ petition untenable.The case has been posted for further hearing on September 15, 2025.Case Title - Dr. Sivaprasad v State of Kerala and Ors.Case No - WP(C) 29777/ 2025Counsel for Petitioner - George Poonthottam (Sr.), Nisha George, A L Navaneeth Krishnan, Kavya Varma M MCounsel for Respondents - P Sreekumar (Sr.), S Prasanth, K R GaneshClick Here To Read/ Download Order

Kerala High Court Declines KTU Vice Chancellor's Interim Plea To Direct All Syndicate Members To Join Meeting

Anamika MJ

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