Confirm appointment of college principal, high court directs Kerala University

Kochi: HC has directed Kerala University to confirm the provisional appointment of Muhammed Thaha as principal of MSM College, Kayamkulam, which had earlier been denied following an allegation that an SFI leader gained admission to a PG course at the college using a fake degree certificate.Justice N Nagaresh issued the order in a petition by Thaha, seeking a directive to the university to approve his appointment. The issue stemmed from a controversy over the admission of SFI leader Nikhil M Thomas to a PG course using a fake degree certificate purportedly issued by Kalinga University in Chhattisgarh.In 2023, while serving as the public information officer of the college under the RTI Act, Thaha responded to an application seeking details of the degree certificate submitted by Thomas. In his reply, he stated that the genuineness of the certificate produced by Thomas could only be verified by Kalinga University. It was later found that the certificate was fake. Following this, the university withdrew its approval for Thaha's appointment as principal-in-charge of the college, alleging that he had acted negligently by not cross-verifying the documents upon receipt of the RTI application. The university also directed the college manager to initiate disciplinary proceedings against him.Thaha's plea contended that he had no role in Thomas's admission and that, at the time, another teacher was serving as principal. The university opposed his contentions, arguing that despite receiving RTI applications and having reasons to suspect the authenticity of the certificate, the college authorities failed to act. Meanwhile, HC provisionally directed the university to approve Thaha's appointment by way of an interim order, noting that his selection was made through a due process.In its final order, HC held that as long as no specific complaint regarding a forged document is received, and since the petitioner was not the competent officer to act on such a complaint, a public information officer is under no legal obligation to initiate an investigation. It observed that the RTI Act, particularly Section 7, does not confer such powers or duties on a public information officer. Accordingly, HC directed Kerala University to confirm Thaha's appointment as principal.