Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala University syndicate which met here on Friday has decided to appoint a ‘service consultant’ to advice the vice-chancellor (VC) and pro vice-chancellor (PVC) on service rules and legal matters. The move, a first of its kind, has sparked unrest among university staff, as it would amount to lack of trust between varsity heads and other staff.The syndicate meeting on Friday has also decided to appoint Malayalam professor at the University C R Prasad as the new registrar in place of R Jayachanran who had been in charge of registrar’s post. Though the university in a press statement claimed that Jayachandran wanted the syndicate to relieve him from the post as he owned up a mistake he had committed in recording the minutes of a syndicate meeting, not many in the university are willing to buy it.As per the claims of university syndicate, the validity of which expired on November 16, former registrar Jayachandran erroneously recorded in the syndicate minutes that the body had ‘resolved’ to convert the post of directorate of management, technology and teacher education (DOMTEC) director into a statutory post. Following criticism, DOMTEC director Jubilee Navaprabha, wife of PWD minister G Sudhakaran had to resign from the post. ``The syndicate decision on creation of a statutory post for DOMTEC director was taken at a meeting held in the month of September. The syndicate has later ratified the recordings in the minutes in another meeting held in October. If it was a mistake by the registrar, why did not the syndicate members correct it when they ratified it in October meeting?” sources close to the former register asked.According to sources, it was not just the accusation regarding the recordings in minutes that led to the expulsion of the Jayachandran from the post. The members in the nominated syndicate believed that it was the responsibility of Jayachandran to inform the state government on time about the need to re-promulgate the ordinance through which the syndicate was constituted six months ago. Following this, the validity of the Kerala syndicate expired on Friday.The syndicate on Friday has also decided to remove the recordings in the minute regarding converting DOMTEC director post into that of a statutory nature.

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