Higher education domain is the main turf where Kerala Governor Arif Mohammad Khan and the Pinarayi Vijayan-led government have their mud fight. It was in August that a seven-member commission submitted a report that recommended a “drastic restructuring” of the domain to achieve an ambitious goal of increasing the gross enrollment rate in higher education from the current 38.8 per cent to 75 per cent by 2036. The ruling CPI(M), however, alleges that the governor’s current moves are to destroy the higher education sector when it is readying for massive changes. This raises the question of how a ‘worst-case scenario’—vice-chancellors of 10 state universities being removed from their position all at once by the governor—would affect Kerala’s higher education domain.
A Supreme Court verdict on October 21, which cancelled the appointment of Kerala Technical University Vice-Chancellor Dr Rajashree M.S., became the biggest weapon with the governor who has been on an open tussle with the Vijayan government since August.
The court observed that Dr Rajashree was appointed without fulfilling the UGC norm that a search committee to appoint a VC should recommend a panel of three names to the chancellor. Two days later, on October 23, the governor issued a letter directing vice-chancellors of nine state universities—including Kerala University VC V.P. Mahadevan Pillai whose term was to end on October 24—to resign by 11:30 am on October 24, citing the violation of UGC norms in their appointments, too. The governor in his letter cited the top court verdict in the Rajashree case along with the norm that only academicians should constitute the search committee.
The VCs did not resign. Instead, they all approached the Kerala High Court challenging the governor’s letter. A single bench of Justice Devan Ramachandran held a special sitting on the Diwali day to hear the case. However, hours before the case was taken up in the court, the governor issued show-cause notices to the VCs, asking them to explain why their appointments were not illegal and void abinito, before 5pm on November 3. When the court asked the senior lawyer representing the governor about the communication of October 23, he replied that it needs to be seen only as “advice or a pious hope” that the VCs will resign in the light of the Supreme Court judgment in Dr Rajashree’s case.
On Tuesday, the governor issued show-cause notices to the VCs of Kerala Digital University and Sreenarayanaguru Open University also. Both universities were founded in 2020. The digital university received the recognition of UGC in February 2021, whereas Sreenarayanaguru University got UGC approval to offer degree and post-graduation courses only last month. Both the VCs were appointed by the chancellor (governor) on recommendation by the state government. The University Acts of both universities state that the first vice chancellor shall be appointed by the chancellor on the recommendation of the government. However, the governor insists that the appointment should have taken place based on the recommendation of the search/selection committee as prescribed in the UGC regulations. Both the VCs have been asked to give their reply by November 4, 5pm.
The governor positions his actions as those against nepotism, favouritism and corruption in the higher education sector. Sources close to him suggest a high probability of the removal of vice-chancellors on November 4. Now, back to the question of whether his actions will cause an earth-shattering effect on higher education.
“It is just a lie spread by the CPI(M) that if VCs are removed, the universities will be orphaned, but the fact is that it will not affect the functioning of any university,” says R.S. Sasikumar, education activist and chairman of the Save University Campaign Committee, a whistle-blower group in Kerala’s higher education. “The charge of VC will be transferred to another professor in the university. These VCs are also basically professors. So, a senior professor in the university will manage the functions. Chancellor will decide which professor is to be given the temporary charge. The Acts of Kerala Agriculture University and Kerala Technical University, however, mention that temporary charges can be given only on the recommendation of the state government. So, in those two universities, the charge can be given only in consultation with the government. In the rest of the universities, the chancellor can decide on his own,” he says.
Sreekumar adds that the CPI(M)-led government, which laments the disruption that can be caused by the removal of VCs, brought in a bigger shake to the system in 2019 when it abruptly ended the tenure of several statutory officers in nine state universities via an ordinance. The retirement age for registrars, examination controllers and finance officers in these nine universities was 60 until then, and the 2019 ordinance made it 56. Those who have completed four years in the statutory post also have been asked to step down via this ordinance. “The government terminated the service of 27 statutory officers via the ordinance,” says Sasikumar. “One must understand that these registrars, examination controllers and finance officers have more role in the day-to-day administration of universities than the VCs have. Did this mass termination cause any big damage to the higher education domain? So, this is the answer to their propaganda that universities will be in deep trouble if VCs are removed.”
Though Sasikumar says so, there are observations that the LDF government and the student organisations may not accept the replacements appointed by the governor for VCs, and, that can lead the higher education domain to a standstill. Big discussions are going on at the highest levels of the government on the way to deal with the situation.
Professor Ayesha Kidwai of Centre for Linguistics, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, who was part of the Commission for Reforms in Higher Education, states that the current “extremely unfortunate crisis” only illustrates the “dangers of universities being made pawns in ego tussles and constitutional battles”. It seems, the mud-slinging and ego game of the high powers are likely to continue and not going to end any time soon.
