Telangana govt, JNTU- Hyderabad VC face off over Registrar appointment

The Telangana Congress government’s alleged interference in JNTU-Hyderabad’s Registrar appointment has sparked a confrontation with Vice-Chancellor T. Kishen Kumar Reddy, who resisted pressure to reinstate former Registrar K. Venkateshwara Rao.

Hyderabad: The Telangana Congress government’s alleged intervention in the Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University (JNTU) -Hyderabad Registrar’s appointment has triggered a row, with the Vice Chancellor reportedly resisting the move.

The issue stemmed from recent JNTU-Hyderabad Vice Chancellor Prof. T Kishen Kumar Reddy appointment of Dr. A Jaya Laxmi, an EEE professor, as the JNTU-Hyderabad Registrar. However, Prof. K Venkateshwara Rao, the previous Registrar, was reportedly in the race for the post again.

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According to sources, while one section within the government backed Dr. Laxmi, another supported Prof. Rao. The government’s alleged direction to the Vice Chancellor to remove the present Registrar, coupled with the Vice Chancellor’s reported refusal to do so, has turned the issue into a face-off between the government and the Vice Chancellor.

In a video that has been circulated to the media, the Vice Chancellor was heard saying, “Yesterday I got pressure from some government officials, requesting to reinstate the previous Registrar in the post. I mentioned that this has never happened in the history of the university. And the VC has the due authority to change the people because the earlier Registrar worked for two years and four months”.

Meanwhile, the University’s teaching and non-teaching staff who took out a rally on the university campus on Friday expressed their support to the Vice Chancellor with a slogan ‘Stand with VC’.

According to university staff, Dr. Laxmi was appointed as the Registrar only about 45 days ago, while Prof. Rao had already served the University for two years and four months.

Stating that the present Registrar belongs to a backward community and from Palamuru region, the teaching staff said for the first time in the University’s history a woman has been given the opportunity to serve as Registrar.

They urged the government and the Higher Education department to allow her to continue in the position, stating that all eligibility criteria, seniority and experience had been duly considered while making the appointment.