New Delhi: Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Monday, October 24, came down heavily on governor Arif Mohammed Khan for seeking the resignation of vice-chancellors of nine universities in the state.
On the other hand, the Kerala high court said it will hold a special session in the evening today, October 24, to consider petitions challenging the governor’s order, according to NDTV.
Hitting out sharply at Khan, Vijayan said the governor does not have the power to seek the resignations of vice-chancellors and accused him of acting against the constitution and the essence of democracy.
The October 23 decision of governor Khan, asking VCs of the nine universities to tender their resignation by 11:30 am on Monday, October 25, kicked up a major controversy, with the state government asking VCs to stay put, defying the governor’s orders.
The chief minister, in a press meet held in Palakkad, alleged that the governor’s move was an encroachment on the powers of a democratically elected government, and the universities that were supposed to be academically independent.
Vijayan said it was an unusual move and accused him of “waging war” with an intention to “destroy” the universities in the state.
“It was the governor who appointed the VCs of these nine universities and if these appointments were made illegally, then the primary responsibility lies with the governor himself,” the chief minister said, adding that the chancellor has no authority to seek their resignations.
Armed with a recent Supreme Court order that had quashed the appointment of the vice-chancellor of APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University in the state for being contrary to University Grants Commission regulations, Khan on Sunday sought resignations of VCs of nine varsities in the state.
The Raj Bhavan said that Khan, as chancellor of universities in the state, issued directions for the resignations to reach him by 11.30 am on Monday.
Vijayan accused the governor of forgetting the basic principles of rule of law and justice and was showing unnatural haste and misusing the position of chancellor.
“…the position of chancellor was being misused to exercise a power that does not exist,” Vijayan said.
The chief minister pointed out that the Supreme Court order on the APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University vice-chancellor was based on a procedural issue and did not say anything about his academic qualification.
“Even in that, there is still an opportunity to file a review petition. However, the chancellor is using this judgment to destabilise the entire university administrations in the state,” he said.
“There is a violation of natural justice in this intervention in the field of higher education. The unilateral move by the chancellor was without even hearing the vice-chancellors,” Vijayan said.
The chief minister said the governor as chancellor cannot ask the vice-chancellors of other universities to resign based on the Supreme Court judgment in the technology varsity VC case because the order, in that case, applied to the VC in that particular case alone.
“It’s clear to anyone with a basic knowledge of law… Don’t think that you can exercise power that you don’t have,” Vijayan said.
The chief minister said there was no provision in the University Act that empowered a chancellor to dismiss a vice-chancellor. He said there were procedures to be followed while removing a VC.
“A VC can be removed in case of any misuse of any fund of the university or on the grounds of moral turpitude. Even then, such allegations must be probed by a high court or Supreme Court judge and can be removed if proven,” he said.
Vijayan said there was a democratically empowered cabinet and added that “it should also be remembered that nominated posts are not above that”.
“The position of chancellor is bestowed upon the governor by a democratic system and is always reversible. Even after continuous encroachment upon the democracy and the autonomy of the university, that position was not reversed due to generosity and not out of fear,” he said.
The ruling CPI (M), meanwhile, accused Khan of making a move to implement the “Sangh parivar’s agenda” in the state’s universities.
A tweet from the governor’s office, announcing Khan’s decision to seek resignations of VCs, said that his decision was based on the October 21 order of the Supreme Court.
Upholding the verdict of Hon’ble SupremeCourt dt 21.10.22 in Civil Appeal Nos.7634-7635 of 2022(@ SLP(c)Nos.21108-21109 of 2021) Hon’ble Governor Shri Arif Mohammed Khan has directed Vice Chancellors of 9 varsities in Kerala(see image) to tender resignation: PRO,KeralaRajBhavan pic.twitter.com/tsT5tQ9NJr
— Kerala Governor (@KeralaGovernor) October 23, 2022
The apex court had quashed the appointment of APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University vice-chancellor Rajasree M.S., saying that the appointment was made against the University Grants Commission (UGC) rules.
The top court had said that the search committee constituted by the state to appoint the vice-chancellor should have recommended a panel of not less than three suitable persons among eminent people in the field of engineering science to the chancellor; however, it sent only one name.
The apex court had held that if a state law came into conflict with a central law – in this case, the UGC regulations – the latter would prevail.
According to Onmanorama, Kerala University vice-chancellor V.P. Mahadevan Pillai will retire on October 24 while A.P.J. Abdul Kalam Technological University vice-chancellor M.S. Rajashree’s appointment had been annulled by the apex court.
Vice-chancellors of Mahatma Gandhi University, Cochin University of Science and Technology, Kerala University of Fisheries and Ocean Studies, Kannur University, Sree Sankaracharya University of Sanskrit, University of Calicut and Thunchath Ezhuthachan Malayalam University were asked to resign.
The news outlet had also reported that some of the vice-chancellor appointments in the case of Kannur, Thunchath Ezhuthachan Malayalam and the University of Fisheries and Ocean Studies had Khan’s approval.
Sources in the governor’s office told the news outlet that in the case of at least five universities – MG, Kannur, Sanskrit, Fisheries and Malayalam – the search committee had provided just one name, instead of a panel of three or five to the chancellor.
‘Decision violates all limits of democracy’
Reacting to the governor’s decision, the ruling Communist Party of India (Marxist) termed it as an outcome of the Sangh parivar’s “conspiracy” to topple the state’s resistance to their alleged agenda of “saffronisation” of the education system in the country.
The CPI(M) state secretariat, in a statement, alleged that the decision “violated all limits of democracy” and was part of a conspiracy to destroy higher education in Kerala.
“It is also part of the Centre’s plan to derail development in Kerala,” it further alleged.
The vice-chancellor of Kannur University also reacted to the governor’s decision, saying he will not be tendering his resignation on Monday. “If I do not resign, let us see what action will be taken,” he said.
CPI(M) state secretary M.V. Govindan and Communist Party of India’s Kanam Rajendran said a meeting of the LDF leaders held in Thiruvananthapuram decided to organise statewide protests against the governor for “misusing” his power as chancellor of the universities.
On November 15, the protests will be organised in front of Raj Bhavan and in the district centres.
(With PTI inputs)
Note: This article, first published at 12:24 pm on October 24, was updated with the response of chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan on the same day at 4:53 pm.