States » NorthPosted at: Oct 6 2026 12:11AM


YS Parmar varsity turmoil: VC withdraws register of powers

Solan, Oct 5 (UNI) In an unprecedented administrative showdown, the Vice-Chancellor of Dr. Yashwant Singh Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry, Nauni, has stripped Registrar Siddhartha Acharya of all statutory and administrative powers with immediate effect.
The drastic order, issued late Monday, accuses the senior administrator of systemic insubordination, dereliction of duty, and prima facie collusion in an escalating campus revolt that allegedly culminated in the Vice-Chancellor Dr. HS Baweja being unlawfully held hostage inside his office by senior faculty members earlier today.
Director of Extension Education Dr. D.P. Sharma has been directed to assume immediate charge as Registrar in an additional capacity, with Acharya instructed to immediately surrender all official records, files, and office keys.
The administrative rupture reached a flashpoint on Monday when four senior faculty members, identified in official orders as Dr. Ashu Chandel (Professor and Head, Basic Sciences), Dr. Subhash Sharma (Head, Social Science), Dr. Ranjana Kumari (Assistant Professor, SAF), and Dr. Nidhish Gautam (Scientist, Extension Education)—allegedly held the Vice-Chancellor hostage in his own office.
According to the executive order, the group hurled abusive, unparliamentary language and extended physical threats intended to deter the University head from discharging official duties. When telephonically directed to intervene and defuse the situation, Acharya reportedly refused to carry out orders and instead allegedly used derogatory language toward the Vice-Chancellor, prompting explicit allegations of collusion between the Registrar and the protesting faculty. The incident marks the climax of a week of mounting unrest across the varsity campus.
Over the weekend, an unattended student charter of demands erupted into an aggressive agitation, culminating in the gherao of the Vice-Chancellor's office and an attempted physical assault on the Secretary to the Vice-Chancellor on October 3.
The Vice-Chancellor noted that Acharya had reportedly flatly refused to engage in talks or initiate administrative measures to de-escalate the student strike. The roots of the administrative conflict trace back to legal disputes surrounding the university’s Board of Management (BOM).
Following a formal legal opinion rendered by the Advocate General of Himachal Pradesh, Sr. Advocate Anup Kumar Rattan, regarding BOM proceedings, Acharya allegedly defied written directives to implement the findings. Tensions deepened following the BOM meeting held on August 12, 2026. The Vice-Chancellor noted that while individual dissent notes submitted by members must be placed on official record, they cannot legally nullify or stay resolutions passed by the majority under the University Act and Statutes.
Defying explicit instructions to place all incoming communications before the Vice-Chancellor, Acharya allegedly unilaterally issued Office Order No. 23268-297 on September 17, staying the execution of BOM decisions. The move was branded an unlawful usurpation of executive authority. An explanation was subsequently sought from the Registrar on September 18, but his written response was formally rejected as unsatisfactory on September 22.
The timing of the crisis has triggered alarm across state administrative circles. The Chancellor of the University and Governor of Himachal is scheduled to visit the Nauni varsity campus on October 11, followed by a campus visit by the Chief Justice of India on November 22.
In his order, the Vice-Chancellor stated that the cumulative pattern of open defiance, incitement of unrest, and administrative sabotage gave rise to a reasonable apprehension that an atmosphere of lawlessness was being deliberately engineered to disrupt these high-profile visits and tarnish the institution's public standing.
Exercising emergency powers vested under the Himachal Pradesh Universities of Agriculture, Horticulture and Forestry Act, 1986, the Vice-Chancellor debarred Acharya of his duties to prevent further subversion of institutional discipline and safeguard official records. Neither Acharya nor the faculty members named in the order have issued a public response at the time of going to press. UNI AK CDS
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