Meghalaya: NEHU VC declares Pro VC’s Academic Council meeting invalid

North Eastern Hill University (NEHU) Vice Chancellor Prof Prabha Shankar Shukla has warned that appropriate action will be taken if Pro Vice Chancellor Prof Sherwin Sungoh proceeds with an Academic Council meeting scheduled for May 21.

The conflict stems from disagreement over proper administrative protocol, with Prof. Shukla asserting that Prof Sungoh lacks the legal authority under the NEHU Act and Statutes to convene such meetings.

Prof Shukla has expressed concerns that decisions made at the disputed meeting could jeopardise student degrees and academic activities.

According to university officials, Prof Shukla had instructed the Joint Registrar to issue a notice for the adjourned Academic Council meeting. When this instruction was not carried out, Registrar Col Omkar Singh (Retd) issued a notice scheduling the meeting for May 23. However, Prof Sungoh subsequently issued a separate notice through the Joint Registrar calling for the same meeting on May 21.

Faculty members and legal experts have noted that university rules specify that only the Vice Chancellor has the authority to convene Academic Council meetings. They caution that decisions made in an improperly convened meeting could be subject to legal challenges.

If the legitimacy of Academic Council decisions comes into question, this could affect several critical university functions, including the announcement of examination results, the conferral of degrees to graduating students, and planning for the upcoming academic session.