Kerala HC cancels appointment of university vice-chancellor amid spat between state govt, Governor
Kochi (PTI): The Kerala High Court on Monday cancelled the appointment of the Vice Chancellor of Kerala University of Fisheries and Ocean Studies (KUFOS), saying that he was appointed in violation of UGC norms.
A bench of Chief Justice S Manikumar and Justice Shaji P Chaly said regulations of the University Grants Commission (UGC) that mandate that a list of three or more candidates be forwarded to the Chancellor for appointment was not followed in the case of Dr K Riji John being appointed as VC of KUFOS.
The court also said that the Chancellor may initiate the process of forming a search committee to select a new VC and added that, henceforth, the selection of VC should strictly follow the UGC norms. The order came on two pleas challenging the appointment of John. The detailed high court order is not yet available.
The order vindicates Governor Arif Mohammed Khan's recent action seeking John's resignation on the same grounds after the Supreme Court had held that according to UGC norms, the search committee constituted by the state should have recommended a panel of not less than three suitable people.
Khan had, thereafter, sent a show cause notice to John asking why he should be allowed to continue as VC in view of the apex court ruling which came while setting aside the appointment of the VC of APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University on the ground that it was in violation of UGC norms.
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Two arrested in K'taka for assaulting minors, uploading CSAM content
Bengaluru (PTI): Two men were arrested for allegedly sexually assaulting two minor girls, recording the acts on mobile phones and uploading the videos online as child sexual abuse material, police said on Thursday.
The accused have been identified as Kiran Kumar (29), hailing from Chitradurga district, and Aditya M K (20), hailing from Shivamogga district, they said.
A probe was initiated after information was received from the NCRP portal regarding a suspected instance of creation of Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM) for online dissemination, police said.
Accordingly, a case was registered at Kaggalipura Police Station under relevant sections of the IT Act on May 10, they added.
Investigation revealed that two minor girl victims were exploited and videos were created and uploaded to the internet. The child victims have subsequently recorded their statements as per procedure and further necessary legal steps have been taken, Pronab Mohanty Director General of Police, Cyber Command, said in a statement.
Based on the statements of the victims, the accused persons, who allegedly assaulted the minors, recorded the acts on mobile phones and uploaded the videos online, were arrested, he said.
Following the probe, sections 65(2) (rape) and 70 (gangrape) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, along with relevant sections of the POCSO Act, have been added to the FIR, police said.
Officials collected relevant information and on May 12, arrested the accused persons and seized three mobile phones belonging to them, in which the videos had allegedly been recorded, he said.
The accused were later produced before the court and taken into police custody for further investigation, he added.
According to him, in CSAM cases, police usually apprehend offenders who have downloaded such content or have kept them in their possession after obtaining them from elsewhere, usually the internet.
"The present case is one of the very few instances where content creators and uploaders have been apprehended," Mohanty added.
