The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : Order on services of 447 lecturers to be withheld

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Jul 26, 2005

Karnataka

Karnataka - Bangalore

Order on services of 447 lecturers to be withheld

Staff Reporter

IN THELEGISLATURE Law Minister's announcement ends four-day impasse in House

BANGALORE: The Government has decided to withhold its order issued on July 12 to terminate the services of 447 lecturers who have not cleared the National Eligibility Test (NET) and the State Level Eligibility Test for Lecturership (SLET) as on July 13, pending further orders from the Karnataka Administrative Tribunal.

The announcement in this regard by the Minister for Law and Parliamentary Affairs, H.K. Patil, in the Legislative Council on Monday ended the four-day impasse over the issue in the House.

The Government had set July 9, 2005 as the deadline for those lecturers to clear the NET and the SLET examinations to get their services regularised in accordance with the UGC specifications. But it did not initiate any measure to terminate them on July 9 as an interlocutory application on the issue was to come up for hearing in the Supreme Court on July 11. However, the application was "dismissed as withdrawn" by the Supreme Court. Following the development, the Government on July 12 issued orders terminating the services of those lecturers in question; fearing inaction or continuation of them in service would amount to contempt of court.

Consequently, Shivaraju and others approached State Administrative Tribunal on the issue and obtained an interim order issued on July 13 directing the Government against terminating the applicants on the basis of its order issued the previous day.

Making the statement, Mr. Patil said the Government has done its best at this juncture without giving room for injustice.

The issue rocked the House continuously for three days from July 19.

The House which was scheduled to assemble at 12.15 p.m. today could meet for just five minutes at 1.30 p.m. as the Chairman, V.R. Sudarshan, held a prolonged closed door meeting with the agitating members and the Government for sorting out the issue.

However, the House again assembled at 4.30 p.m. to resume its scheduled business.

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