No plans to convert PU into Central varsity: Govt in LS

The Central Ministry of Education has stated that the elections to the Senate, Panjab University, are conducted after approval by the Chancellor, and the government has no plans to convert the PU into a Central University, as of now. The PU Vice-Chancellor’s office is held by the Vice-President of India.

The ministry’s reply came in response to a question raised by Chandigarh MP Manish Tewari in the Lok Sabha over the delay in elections to the Senate, the tenure of which ended on October 31.

Tewari had asked if the government was taking or had proposed any measure to expedite the Senate election process, which is mandated under the Panjab University Act, 1947.

“The Education Ministry has washed its hands of the whole affair and put the onus on the PU and the Chancellor. In a way, the ministry has said that it is not its responsibility,” said Tewari, adding that by stating that the government does not plan to convert the PU into a Central University as of now, they have left the door ajar for the future. “This has serious implications for the polity of Punjab and Panjab University’s future,” he wrote on his X handle.

On December 3, Tewari had raised the issue during Zero Hour in the Lok Sabha. “People are of the view that the government wants to abolish the Senate. The government should immediately notify and conduct elections to the body,” he had said, choosing Punjabi as the medium. In the question posed to the ministry, he also stated that according to the Act governing the PU, the elections to the Senate should be notified 240 days before its tenure ends, but despite its tenure having ended on October 31, a notification is yet to be issued.

Students of the university have been protesting the delay in polls for the past 40 days under the banner of the Panjab University Bachao Morcha outside the Vice-Chancellor’s office.