Congress hails Kerala Governor’s move to demand resignation of 9 vice-chancellors

Governor referred to the recent ruling of the Supreme Court in which the apex court quashed the appointment of the vice-chancellor (VC) of APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University for being contrary to UGC regulations. Khan demanded the resignation of the VCs of nine universities in the state by 11:30 AM on Monday.

M V Govindan, state Secretary of the CPI(M) termed the decision as “unheard of” and among many such unilateral decisions taken by the Governor. He said, there is now no doubt that this is an attempt to appoint people close to or in RSS at the helm of the varsities through the back door. “It is a political agenda and will be countered by the state of Kerala,” he added.

He affirmed that the Governor has powers to take certain decisions regarding the state, but they should be within the limits of the Constitution and things have reached “a level of madness” in the state.

Kerala’s Leader of Opposition V D Satheesan welcomed the Governor’s move as “belated”. He said that the Governor has now accepted that the state government is violating UGC rules while appointing the VCs. “We welcome the fact that the Governor is now ready to correct the mistake he made, even if it is belated,” he added.

The Higher Education Minister of Kerala, R Bindu expressed concerns claiming that the state is falling prey to “fascist tendencies” and the government must consider this seriously. She asserted that the “unilateral” decision of the Governor was a “deliberate and conscious effort” to create problems in the field of higher education in the southern state.

“It is a sad state of affairs. Attempts are being made to chain or control the government,” she claimed.

With inputs from PTI