A. Sabu, the member secretary of the Kerala State Council for Science, Technology and Environment, has officially withdrawn his name from the search-cum-selection committee tasked with choosing the new Vice-Chancellor for the University of Calicut. His decision to decline the nomination, which came from the University Senate, has been communicated to the university registrar’s office.
This development follows the formal constitution of the search committee by Governor and Chancellor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar. The committee includes distinguished academics such as Eluvathingal D. Jemmis, a National Science Chair professor from the Department of Inorganic and Physical Chemistry at the Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru, serving as the Chancellor’s nominee. Additionally, Ravindra D. Kulkarni, the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Mumbai, was appointed as the nominee from the University Grants Commission.
Sources indicate that Mr. Sabu cited existing professional commitments as his reason for stepping down. He was nominated by the Senate during a meeting on October 30. This isn’t the first setback for the Senate’s nominee selection; previously, on August 23, Dharmaraj Adat, former Vice-Chancellor of Sree Sankaracharya University of Sanskrit, also declined the position. Despite another Senate meeting on September 11, a consensus remained elusive.
The legal implications of Mr. Sabu’s decision are currently unclear, especially since the Chancellor had already formalized the panel’s composition before his withdrawal.