Stay on Anna University PhD admissions vacated

CHENNAI: The Madras High Court’s Madurai Bench has vacated the interim stay on PhD admissions at Anna University, paving the way for the university to resume its admission process for the current academic year.

The interim stay was granted following a petition filed by temporary professors who were dismissed from Anna University's constituent colleges.

The petitioners alleged that the university was recruiting PhD research scholars to perform teaching duties after terminating their services. Earlier, the university had issued a notification inviting applications for PhD admissions. However, the High Court stayed the process, forcing the cancellation of the PhD entrance examination scheduled for May and leaving hundreds of research aspirants in limbo. 

When the matter came up for hearing on Monday, counsel for the university argued that the continuation of the stay was adversely affecting prospective PhD candidates. The university also clarified that research fellowships had not been created to replace the dismissed temporary faculty members. 

After hearing submissions from both sides, Justice PT Asha vacated the interim stay on the PhD admission process. Following the order, Anna University is expected to reopen applications for its PhD programmes within the next 10 days, allowing the long-delayed admission process to move forward.