The selection of a retired chemistry professor for the ‘Diamond Jubilee Professor’ award by Karnatak University, Dharwad, has led to controversy with some faculty members taking exceptions.
The varsity chose retired Chemistry professor T.M. Aminabhavi for the award and six professors who had served in the same department for nearly four decades have taken exception saying that a ‘tainted’ person had been chosen.
Addressing presspersons in Dharwad on Wednesday B.R. Havinale and others said that Aminabhavi had been suspended on the charge of cheating his colleague M.Y. Kariduraganavar while obtaining a patent for his research in polymer science. He said that Prof. Aminabhavi had got the patent in his name for research done by Prof. Kariduraganavar and had sold it to a U.S. company without the knowledge of his colleague. After the controversy, Prof. Aminabhavi was suspended, they said.
Prof. Havinale said that without considering all these aspects, Vice-Chancellor K.B. Gudasi had chosen T.M. Aminabhavi for the award. Such a decision would demean the university and it should immediately drop his name for the award, he demanded.
Prof. Havinale said that the VC was approached on the issue, but seemed firm on the decision. “It seems the VC is either under tremendous pressure to confer the award on Prof. Aminabhavi or has other reasons for the decision. We will be forced to approach the Governor of Karnataka, the Chancellor of the university, if Mr. Aminabhavi’s name is not dropped,” he said.
Published - March 18, 2021 01:27 am IST
