SRM School of Law Appoints Prof. (Dr.) Y.S.R. Murthy as Pro Vice-Chancellor, Law
Chennai : Professor Y.S.R. Murthy took over as the Pro Vice Chancellor, School of Law, SRM Institute of Science and Technology. A civil servant turned educator, he has over four decades of rich and varied experience in higher education, human rights, media and non-governmental organisations, both at the national and international level.
Between 2020-24, he was the Founding Vice Chancellor and Founding Dean, School of Law at RV University, Bengaluru. Under his leadership, the RV University grew rapidly. He later served as the Vice Chancellor of the Assam Royal Global University between 2024-25.
A passionate institution builder, Dr. Murthy steered the O.P. Jindal Global University (JGU) during its rapid expansion phase between 2009 and 2020 as a part of its top leadership team. He contributed to its rise in international rankings and becoming an Institution of Eminence (IOE). Professor Murthy also worked as the Professor, Registrar, Executive Director, Centre for Human Rights Studies and Senior Fellow, International Institute of Higher Education Research and Capacity Building (IIHEd) in JGU.
As an Officer from the 1985 batch of the IAS and Allied Services, Dr. Murthy held many sensitive and responsible positions in the Ministry of Finance, Prime Minister’s Office, President Secretariat and Cabinet Secretariat. Dr. Murthy had served the National Human Rights Commission of India in various capacities for over 12 years including as the Director, Research and has had the privilege of working with five former Chief Justices of India who include such eminent personalities as Mr. Justice M.N. Venkatachaliah and Mr. Justice J.S. Verma. He acted as the Spokesman for several dignitaries including, among others, Mr. Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Dr. Manmohan Singh, Mr. Rajnath Singh and Mr. Nitish Kumar.
He holds a Bachelors and Master’s Degree in Statistics from the University of Madras, M.A. degree in Human Rights from the University of London and Ph.D. degree from the Tamil Nadu Dr. Ambedkar Law University, Chennai. He secured University First Rank in M.Sc. and also the prestigious British Chevening Fellowship. He received his training in Mass Communication from IIMC, Delhi in 1988-89 and also in Film Appreciation and Television Production from FTII, Pune in 1989.
Dr. Murthy is a National Coordinator of SWAYAM, besides being a Member of the Association of British Scholars. Dr. Murthy is the recipient of the Capital Foundation’s Justice J.S. Verma National Award for outstanding contribution to human rights, Chanakya National Award 2023 for Excellence in Education instituted by the Public Relations Council of India (PRCI), the Bangalore Management Association (BMA) Education Excellence Award 2023 and several other awards.
He serves on the Board of Management of the Dev Sanskriti Vishwa Vidyalaya, Haridwar. Prof. Murthy is a life member of the Indian Society of International Law (ISIL) and currently serves as the Executive Council member.
He is consulted by the Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration, Government of Kerala, IGNOU, JNU, Delhi University and some prominent human rights organisations. He is an Advisor to the All-India Network of NGOs and Individuals working with National and State Human Rights Institutions (AINNI). He is a part of the Core Group on Anti-Torture Civil Society Coalition established by the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative.
Professor Murthy has completed several training programmes, among others, in IIT, Delhi, IIM Lucknow, IIFT, Delhi, Harvard University, USA, McGill University, Canada and has visited over 50 countries. In 2019, Dr. Murthy was appointed as the Member, Haryana State Higher Education Council.
