The Hindu Business Line : Fee cut issue: HRD Ministry may dismiss IIMA Society

THE Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad (IIMA) Society, arguably the legal owner of the IIMA, is facing the threat of dismissal by the Union Ministry of Human Resource Development (HRD).

At a meeting here on Tuesday, the Ministry representatives, Joint Secretary, Mr V.S. Pandey, and Financial Adviser, Mr V. Piparsania, ex-officio members at the society meeting, also threatened the Board of Governors with dismissal, even as it targeted IIMA Director, Prof Bakul Dholakia, on the issue of the B-school authorities taking legal recourse on the fee cut issue.

With this, the fee cut issue has taken an important turn to the extent that IIMA has been set up under the Societies Act. Even as the HRD Ministry representatives threatened that the Government could supersede or even dismiss the Society, the meeting convened to consider the Government orders on the fee cut issue, adjourned without taking any concrete decision.

Mr Praful Anubhai, who briefed the media here on Wednesday, said that the threatening stance taken by the Ministry officials rendered null and void any chances of arriving at an amicable solution on the fee cut issue. The meeting of the Society, that saw 28 out of the total 100 members take part, was chaired by Mr Shrenik Lalbhai. The Society members, while reiterating their confidence in the IIMA Director and the Governing Board, took exception to the threats and unwarranted remarks by the Government representatives.

The media briefing was also attended by three other donor members — Mr Rajesh Mehta, Mr B.H. Jajoo and Mr Anil Bakeri. Some of the points made by the Ministry officials that were seen as threatening by the donor members of the IIMA Society included: Taking judicial recourse tantamount to direct confrontation with the Government; the Union Government can supersede/dismiss the Society, if they took any legal recourse; all past fee raises implemented by the Society were illegal as bye-laws were framed and therefore, the Government could ask the Society to deposit all these fee increases effected over the past 40 years with the Government; and action could be initiated against the IIMA Director for keeping the Board/Society ill informed about the Government's line on this issue.

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