Varsity cancels VS son’s PhD registration

In a setback to Kerala’s octogenarian Marxist and Opposition leader VS Achuthanandan, engaged in a crusade against corruption and nepotism, the syndicate of the Kerala University on Tuesday decided to cancel the PhD registration of his son VA Arun Kumar on the charge that he had earned it in violation of the qualification criteria.

A sub-committee of the syndicate, which looked into the registration papers of Arun Kumar following a direction from the Kerala High Court, found that he did not have the mandatory qualifications to apply for a PhD. Arun Kumar is also facing several inquiries over allegations that he had indulged in irregular practices when his father was chief minister.

Arun Kumar had managed to get the registration three years back but the then university syndicate cancelled the registration following media reports that he did not meet the eligibility criteria. He had then approached the High Court which asked the present syndicate to reexamine the case.

The mandatory requirement for a PhD registration was that the applicant should have either seven years teaching experience or should have cleared the national eligibility test. The syndicate sub-committee found that he had neither of the two and so decided to cancel his PhD registration in bio-informatics. A source claimed that the decision to cancel the registration was unanimous.

The university had invited applications for PhD registration on December 8, 2005. Those who had seven years of teaching experience were eligible to get admission without an entrance examination. Arun Kumar was admitted in November, 2006.