Nainital, March 20 The Uttarakhand High Court has ruled that the Vice-Chancellor of the Govind Ballabh Pant University of Agriculture and Technology based in Pantnagar has no authority to issue a charge sheet against a professor.
A bench comprising Chief Justice Manoj Kumar Gupta and Justice Subhash Upadhyay, while disposing of a petition filed by Professor Shivendra Kashyap in this regard, directed the university to immediately withdraw the disputed charge sheet.
Kashyap, a professor of Agricultural Communication, had moved the High Court seeking the quashing of a charge sheet dated February 5, 2026, and the subsequent departmental disciplinary proceedings initiated against him.
Kashyap also serves as the Coordinator of the DST-TEC (Technology Enabling Centre).
Advocate Vipul Sharma, appearing for Kashyap in the court, said that according to the Uttarakhand Government Servants (Discipline and Appeal) Rules, 2003, the appointing authority is also the disciplinary authority, and therefore, the charge sheet must be issued and signed only by the disciplinary authority.
He said that in this case, the charge sheet was allegedly issued by the Chief Personnel Officer acting on behalf of the Vice-Chancellor, which is contrary to the statutory order.
He also argued that the petitioner was appointed by the University's Board of Management and not by the Vice-Chancellor, and therefore, the Vice-Chancellor did not have the authority to issue a charge sheet.
While disposing of the petition, the High Court directed that the disputed charge sheet be withdrawn.
The court also clarified that if a new charge sheet is issued in the future, the petitioner will be free to challenge it in accordance with the law.