Complaint lodged against Kerala govt's decision to appoint DYFI leader as PSC member

Thiruvananthapuram: A complaint has been lodged against the government’s decision to appoint DYFI leader Dr Princy Kuriakose as a PSC member. 

It is alleged that Princy, who wrote her PhD thesis on the topic ‘The Concept of Vedadhikara according to Sree Sankaracharya and Chattambiswamikal- A comparative study’, gave incorrect references and made serious errors regarding Sree Sankaracharya. Despite this, she was awarded the PhD degree in 2018 due to political influence, allegations say.

The Save University Campaign lodged a complaint against the government's decision. Kalady Sree Sankaracharya University's former Vice Chancellor Dr P.K Dharmarajan was her research supervisor. 

The complaint is that Shankaracharya, who is believed to have lived in the 8th-9th century centuries, was wrongly recorded as having lived in the 18th-19th century in Princy’s thesis. She also reportedly wrote that untouchability came into existence in the 19th century.

The thesis also contains erroneous use of English phrases and words, spelling, and grammatical errors. Despite the errors being pointed out by the participants during the Open Defense, the then VC advised in favour of awarding the candidate with a PhD, the complaint states. 

Princy is the former president of DYFI Ernakulam district and a state committee member. Save University Campaign Committee Chairman RS Sasikumar and Convenor M Shajar Khan alleged that the government is turning PSC appointments into political appointments.