The Syndicate of the Kannur University approved the appointment of Priya Varghese as the Associate Professor in the Malayalam department of the university. Ms. Varghese is the wife of K.K. Ragesh, a former member of parliament, who is now private secretary to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan.
There was a controversy over the issue after the university chose Ms. Varghese over other qualified candidates when the rank list was prepared. The Save University Campaign Committee opposed the decision, alleging that Ms. Varghese did not have the minimum eligibility for the post, which requires a research degree with eight years of experience at the assistant professor level.
The committee had claimed that she joined as an assistant professor at Sree Kerala Varma College in 2012 and had taken three years leave for completing her PhD. The committee also claimed that as per the clause 3.9 UGC Regulation 2018 the time taken by candidates to acquire the degree shall not be considered as teaching experience for appointment to teaching position.
