Karnataka High Court allows engineering college to terminate service of faculty due to closure of course, directs payment of ₹40 lakh to each professor

Members of the module successful an engineering assemblage cannot assertion the close to stay successful work till the property of superannuation erstwhile the unaided department, successful which they worked, has been validly closed and posts are abolished, stated the High Court of Karnataka.

A part seat comprising Justice D.K. Singh and Justice Tara Vitasta Ganju made these observations portion allowing an entreaty filed by Malnad College of Engineering, Hassan.

However, the seat directed the assemblage to wage ₹40 lakh each arsenic fiscal assistance to the the module members taking enactment that they had worked for a agelong clip successful the college, and them losing their occupation earlier the property of superannuation owed to closure of the department.

Single justice order

The assemblage had appealed against a azygous judge’s December 2023 absorption to continuing the services of the 2 professors till they attain superannuation property of 65 years arsenic per regulations of the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) contempt winding up the Automobile Engineering Department.

The azygous justice had passed the bid successful favour of M.K Ravishankar and K.P. Ravikumar, who were arsenic professors successful the section since 1997 and 2005, respectively.

The seat noted that the assemblage decided to adjacent the section owed to diminution successful fig of students opting for the automobile engineering course. Both the Visvesvaraya Technological University and the AICTE had nary objection to the assemblage management’s determination to adjacent the department. The seat noted that the assemblage had besides closed the Industrial and Production Engineering section from the world league 2021-22.

Once the self-financing section was closed, the petitioner-professors had nary close to proceed successful work arsenic the station to which they were appointed were abolished, the seat said portion stating they would person continued successful work till superannuation had the section not been closed.