KATHMANDU, Sept 28: Tribhuvan University (TU) has courted controversy following the commencement of the process of selection of dean for the Faculty of  Humanities. Despite TU's intent to reduce political pressure by adhering to the standard criteria for filling positions, it has faced accusations that the selection committee acted arbitrarily.

Although the dean selection process for the Faculty of Humanities has been carried out based on standard procedure, protests have emerged alleging that the committee lacked fairness in selecting qualified candidates.

Professor Krishnaraj Acharya, one of the candidates for the position of dean, has filed a complaint with the TU Vice-Chancellor’s Office, claiming that despite submitting a Ph.D. certificate, his Ph.D. score was not included in the shortlist.

He lamented that despite submitting the certificate, the evaluation committee did not include the 8 points for his doctorate, thereby excluding him from the competition.

“I submitted my Ph.D. certificate in economics from Sanskrit University. However, my Ph.D. score was excluded, and five other names were shortlisted. The selection committee published a flawed result, so I submitted a complaint to the vice-chancellor. If TU doesn’t correct the mistake, I will seek legal action. If any documents were missing, the committee should have requested them, but instead, they chose to ignore my Ph.D. and sidelined me,” Acharya told Republica.

He further alleged that despite creating selection criteria, there could be manipulation to appoint politically connected individuals.

TU has established criteria for every position this time. Professor Keshav Paudel stated that just when professors were beginning to believe that officials from responsible bodies would become accountable and transparent as per the established criteria, manipulation in the appointment of the Dean of the Faculty of Humanities has made it difficult to maintain that trust.

Students picketed at the Dean's office on Wednesday, demanding the correction of errors in the Dean appointment process for the Faculty of Humanities.

In 2024 BS, TU introduced new regulations regarding appointments. On the basis of the new regulations for appointments, TU called for vacancies for 31 posts, including eight positions of dean, one executive director for the research center, a director for the planning directorate, 17 posts of campus chief, and six assistant exam controllers. A total of 271 applications were received for these posts, according to Raju Shrestha of the Rector’s Office.

Separate selection committees were formed for each position. However, Professor Paudel expressed doubts about the accountability of TU officials, recalling a previous controversy during the appointment of the Head of the Sociology Department, which had to be corrected following recommendations.

“TU has gained a bad reputation under the guise of selecting experts. The practice of autocracy under the label of meritocracy is unfortunate,” Paudel said, “There is support for political affiliates only. No one stands up for non-affiliated teachers. We are preparing to pursue legal action alongside Professor Krishnaraj Acharya.”

He added, “Experts from the political party's technical team, including Professor Dr Rajkumar Pokharel and the vice-chancellor, have been assigned for the dean selection process. There have been no complaints against the undue influence by the vice-chancellor. However, I object to the committee chair, Pokharel, who failed to maintain confidentiality and posted on social media suggesting that everything he did was correct.”

Pokharel posted on his social media: “If I leave my prestigious certificate at home instead of presenting it at the service commission exam, can the commission deny me the points just because the certificate is at my house?”

High applications for Campus Chief

The campus chief position has garnered the most interest at TU. According to Raju Shrestha, the private assistant from the Rector’s Office, 116 applications were submitted for 17 vacant positions. The highest number of applications, 17, were for the position of chief at Patan Multiple Campus.

The Vice-Chancellor’s Office is responsible for the appointment of deans and directors, while the Registrar’s Office is in charge of appointing assistant controllers. Similarly, the Rector's Office handles campus chief appointments. Each body has formed its selection committees.

TU spokesperson Yam Singh Bohara stated that the appointment process for the Dean of Humanities is currently underway. He claimed that the selection committee, comprised of experts, is proceeding with the dean appointment process in accordance with the established criteria.

 
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