New Delhi: The National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) clarified that its accreditation and assessment is transparent and cannot be compromised, days after its chairman resigned alleging that universities were obtaining questionable grades through unfair means.

"As per the mandate of NAAC, the entire process of accreditation and assessment is robust, transparent, ICT-driven and automated.

"The system cannot be compromised because the whole process is decentralised, transparent and accessible to the stakeholders through a user friendly portal and dashboard at all stages of the assessment and accreditation process," the NAAC said in a statement.

"The processes within NAAC are continuously being improved so that assessment and accreditation of the educational institutions are done transparently and professionally," it added.

NAAC chairperson Bhushan Patwardhan had resigned on Sunday, saying he was doing so to safeguard "the sanctity of the post", days after alleging that universities were obtaining questionable grades through unfair means.

In a letter to University Grants Commission chairman M Jagadesh Kumar on Sunday night, Patwardhan said he was resigning from his post.

"After careful reconsideration of the entire subject, I hereby resign from the position of Chairman of the Executive Committee, NAAC, Bengaluru, in the larger interest of the UGC, NAAC, and Indian higher education system," he wrote.

"I wish to reiterate that I had nothing personal in this matter but it was an act to safeguard self-respect and the sanctity of the post of chairman EC and the NAAC," he added.

NAAC is an autonomous body under the UGC that assesses and certifies higher educational institutions with gradings as part of accreditation.

Patwardhan last week demanded an "independent inquiry" into UGC's move to appoint an "additional chairman without any legal authority".

In another letter to the UGC chairman last month, Patwardhan alleged that "vested interests and malpractices" were leading to some higher educational institutes obtaining "questionable grades". He also expressed his "intent to resign" in that letter. There was no comment from UGC on the subject.