State govt’s efforts to establish state varsity at Chhatarpur come to nought
BHOPAL: Around two dozen private colleges, which have opened after 2009 in Bundelkhand region of Madhya Pradesh, are in trouble because of the legal wrangle between the State and Central government for the last five years, following upgradation of Sagar University as Central university.
The issue could not be resolved even after chief minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan writing to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh The university has sent a letter of Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD) denying affiliation to these private colleges.
“The university granted affiliation to all colleges existing in 2009 and approved new courses in them later, but it cannot affiliate new colleges which came up after 2009, as per its Act,” said Prof RK Namdeo, director of college development council (DCDC).
The university this year abruptly denied affiliation to the colleges which were earlier affiliated to it, quoting the central government’s order. “I cannot say why the colleges were affiliated in previous years but now\ the MHRD has strictly asked us to deny affiliation, because it would be against the law,” said the DCDC.
This situation has caused problem for around 17 NCTE-recognised private B Ed which approached the State government for resolving their issue. As per the Act, a central university is a non-affiliated university but in 2009, it granted affiliation to colleges in Sagar division because there was no state-run university to provide affiliation to them at that time.
The State government set up Maharaja Chhatrasal University with its headquarters in Chhatarpur, the District of Sagar division in 2011 and got approved its bill from the Vidhan Sabha. It could not come in existence because of legal issue involved in its notification process and Central government’s role in it.
“For legal existence of a state university in the jurisdiction area of the central university, the central government has to change its notification issued for the Sagar varsity with the nod from the President. Only then colleges affiliated with the central university would be de-affiliated and get affiliation from the State University,” said officials, adding that unfortunately, this simple process could not be done in the last two and half year.
Let them go to court: Umashankar Gupta
The State government has again opened the files related with the issue after colleges sought its help for affiliation. Minister for higher and technical education Umashankar Gupta held a meeting with officials of law department. “The state cannot open its university for which it passed the bill because of legal issue. The state government has been making serious efforts to resolve the matter and pursued several times with the Central government but to no avail. Now, private colleges can go to the court,” said the minister.
Kansotiya talks to MHRD Secretary
Principal Secretary of Higher Education JN Kansotiya talked with MHRD secretary in this regard and sought affiliation for new colleges till the matter is resolved. The officer sent a request too to the government.
Similar problem in C’garh too
Similar legal wrangle emerged in Chhattisgarh where Bilaspur’s Guru Ghasidas Vishwavidyalaya was converted as central government at the same time in 2009. The State government set up a state university there and granted affiliation to colleges for the area without getting nod from the Central Government, which the law officials, was a legal anomaly there and could be questioned.
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