The Supreme Court has reprimanded the Centre for failing to provide necessary logistical assistance to a court-appointed committee tasked with auditing private universities. A bench of justices Ahsanuddin Amanullah and NV Anjaria issued a contempt notice to Union education secretary Vineet Joshi, deeming his inaction an 'affront' to the highest court.
The committee, headed by RM Sharma, was struggling to operate from a dilapidated office space in Shastri Bhawan, which is slated for renovation in a month or two. The bench expressed its disapproval, stating that the Centre's conduct was a direct affront to the court and amounts to contempt.
The matter has been adjourned to April 27. The court's order came in response to a petition filed by a student of Amity University who was harassed for seeking a name change in the college records. The court has expanded the scope of the petition, issuing pan-India directions to states and UTs to collect information about private universities, including staff wages and selection processes.
