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Minister for Higher Education Roji M. John on Saturday said that the United Democratic Front (UDF) government will resist any attempt by the Governor to infuse his political interests in universities in his capacity as the Chancellor of the varsities.
Addressing media at Ernakulam Press Club here, the Minister, however, reiterated that the government would attempt not to escalate issues into a collision between the government and the Governor as it would be detrimental to the higher education sector.
He was responding to questions on the recent appointment of Mavoothu. D., reportedly an RSS-BJP supporter, as Vice-Chancellor in-charge of Mahatma Gandhi University (MGU) and a group of alleged Sangh Parivar supporters to the Senate of the varsity by Governor Rajendra Arlekar.
On the selection of Dr. Mavooth, the Minister said the appointment took place within days of the UDF assuming power and the Governor neither asked names of potential candidates nor did the government get the time to propose any. “As per the statute, the Chancellor has the right to appoint a V-C-in charge once a V-C retires. He used that power in MGU,” Mr. John said.
“If the Governor attempts to sneak in his political interests using statutory powers, we will resist it in all possible manners. We are clear about our ideological stands. We will not water it down,” he said.
He said the government stance is to smoothly run the higher education sector without compromising on its ideological positions.
Low turnout
On the issue of the lower demand for traditional academic programmes that affect student-teacher ratio in colleges, the Minister said the government will address the issue and explore options including redeployment of teachers to colleges with higher turnout of students. “Or there has to be newer programmes that suit changing demands. We will discuss the matter with stakeholders including teachers’ forums,” he said.
The Minister criticised the CBSE and the Union government for the uncertainty over Plus Two results which has left many students and parents anxious. “The controversy has caused a crisis in higher education sector. Though the State government has finished the Kerala Engineering Architecture Medical (KEAM) entrance examination procedures in a time-bound manner, since the publication of rank list is connected to CBSE results, many parents are anxious. The State government is prepared to allay the fears and go ahead. The Centre and the CBSE should have avoided the uncertainty,” he said.
SFI questions Minister
The Students’ Federation of India (SFI), meanwhile, took strong exception to the Minister’s remarks on the recent appointments to MGU. SFI State secretary is P.S. Sanjeev said the Minister’s statement that he was unaware of the appointment of Dr. Mavooth exposed his incompetency.
“As the Minister of Higher Educations, he is the Pro- Chancellor of the university. If the V-C and the Senate members were appointed without his knowledge, then it shows he is not fit for the post,” Mr. Sanjeev told media in Kochi on Saturday.
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