In a significant development on Friday, the Punjab and Haryana High Court ordered that no actions should be taken based on the ongoing inquiry against Dheeraj Sharma, Director of the Indian Institute of Management (IIM), Rohtak, until April 22. The inquiry, initiated by the central government, is examining Sharma’s tenure and qualifications.
Justice Vinod S Bhardwaj issued the directive after Sharma’s counsel, Vivek Singla, raised concerns about the initiation of the probe despite previous court orders to hold off on any decisions affecting Sharma until further hearings. This order comes in the wake of an email received by Sharma on April 9, informing him of the probe’s terms set by the central government, which Sharma’s legal team argued violated the court’s standing stay order.
The controversy began on March 5, when President Droupadi Murmu, acting in her capacity as ‘visitor of the institute’ with authoritative powers, mandated the investigation. IIM Mumbai Director Professor Manoj Tiwari was appointed as the inquiry officer with a three-month deadline to submit his findings.
The focus of the investigation revolves around Sharma’s academic qualifications, which allegedly do not meet the stipulated first division requirement for the directorial post; Sharma’s degree is reported as second division. Despite this, Sharma was reappointed for a second term as director on February 28, 2022, following the conclusion of his first term earlier that month.
Sharma has contested the probe’s legitimacy, initially challenged in court last month. Despite the high court’s previous directive to pause any related decisions, the inquiry moved forward with the April 9 notification.
Additional Solicitor General of India, Satya Pal Jain, defended the continuation of the inquiry, stating that the President, as the ‘visitor,’ was not directly involved in the lawsuit initiated by Sharma in March. Jain argued that granting any interim relief would essentially fulfill Sharma’s requests prematurely. However, the court disagreed with Jain’s rationale and decided to postpone any further proceedings until the next hearing.
The court criticized the timing of the inquiry’s advancement, suggesting that it seemed strategically timed around the high court’s upcoming closure for the Baisakhi break from April 10 to April 20, implying an attempt to overreach the judicial process.
As the situation unfolds, the High Court has scheduled further hearings for April 22.
