SU appeals against Human Rights Commission recommendations

HIGH COURT ADMITS APPEAL, STAYS SHRC RECOMMENDATION

GANGTOK 26 NOV: The High Court passed a stay order today in an appeal filed by the Sikkim University against the recommendations of the Sikkim State Human Rights Commission and directed to serve notices to the respondents.
The Commission, it may be recalled, had passed a strong set of recommendations against the University and individually against the former VC, Prof Mahendra P Lama, on a complaint filed with it by four former faculty members. The duo had complained against the University’s continuing refusal to release their salaries or explain why it was doing so. The University had been advise to release the due salaries of the complainants and also issue them experience certificates. Prof Lama, whom the Commission saw as having intentionally engineered the travails on the complainants, had been directed to pay damages to two of them as compensation.
Madhuchandra Bhattacharjee, advocate for Sikkim University, when contacted, informed that Sikkim University and the former Vice Chancellor had moved the appeal questioning the jurisdiction of the State Human Rights Commission and claiming that they had been provided enough time to defend themselves.
Ms. Bhattacharjee informs that the appeal argues that a ‘service matter’ does not fall under the jurisdiction of State Human Rights Commission and that the Commission had passed the recommendations without examinations of the facts.
The appeal, she adds, also contends that the Commission was biased and had passed recommendations in an arbitrary manner, without, as mentioned, providing her enough time to defend her clients.
The division bench of Sikkim High Court today admitted the case and directed that notice be issues to the respondents and allowed a stay on the recommendations.
The Sikkim State Human Rights Commission headed by former Chief Justice of Sikkim High Court, Justice Ajoy Nath Ray, has recommended, apart from release of pending salaries and expereince certificates by the University, that Prof. Lama “personally payout of his own funds compensation for illegal actions initiated and persisted in by him to the prejudice and loss of the petitioners to the extent of Rs. 2,44,000 to four complainants” and also recommended to the Sikkim University it’s Executive Council and all concerned office bearers, employees and staff to “forthwith cancel the proceedings and decisions of Executive Council dated 16/ 3/ 2012, New Delhi as it is a product of illegal initiation of proceedings and was reached in breach of the rules of natural justice and Sikkim University”.