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Nagpur- HC maintains stay on PDKV staffers' termination


In a respite to beleaguered employees of Panjabrao Deshmukh Krishi Vidyapeeth (PDKV) who were issued termination notices, the Nagpur bench of Bombay high court on Wednesday extended the status quo by a week.

A division bench comprising justices PB Majmudar and Prasanna Varale was hearing petitions of PDKV employees challenging termination of their services by the Akola-based university for their failure to produce caste validity certificates.
Earlier, the petitioners citing documents obtained under RTI alleged that the chancellor's office had failed to take action in a similar case related to university. They pointed out that the chancellor in his letter of August 24 last year, expressed his inability to pass orders stating that he had "no jurisdiction to cancel the proceedings of the selection committee as he is not an authority as per provisions of Section 29 of Maharashtra Agriculture University Act, 1983". The case was related to an inquiry conducted by the Director General of Maharashtra Council for Agricultural Education Research (MCAER) regarding irregularities and illegalities committed by the selection committee appointed by PDKV in 2006 and 2008 for selecting candidates on teaching posts. The report was submitted to chancellor for annulling the decisions taken by the selection panel.

The petitioners further argued in same vein chancellor's December 16 order of last year which directed termination of PDKV employees were issued without any jurisdiction vested in him. They demanded that this order along with another December 29 order passed by PDKV vice chancellor on chancellor's directives for termination should be quashed and set aside. Caste Scrutiny Committee and College of Horticulture in Akola, besides PDKV are other respondents in the petitions.

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