The CPI raised concerns in the cabinet meeting about the bill to introduce private universities in Kerala, with CPI minister P. Prasad reportedly demanding further discussions on the bill.
In the 2024 budget, Kerala Finance Minister K. Balagopal announced measures to facilitate the establishment of private universities. The government had earlier tasked the Higher Education Council with studying the feasibility of private universities in different sectors. A draft bill was then formulated based on the council’s recommendations.
When Balagopal announced in his last budget speech that “opportunities for establishing foreign university campuses will be examined in accordance with the new UGC guidelines,” many noted that this stance contradicted the party’s politburo position on the issue.
On January 7, 2023, the CPI(M) politburo issued a statement opposing the UGC’s move to allow foreign universities and educational institutions to set up campuses in India with autonomy over fee structures and faculty recruitment. “This will lead to the creation of enclaves of high-fee, elitist institutions, further distorting the structure of higher education in the country,” the party had stated. Furthermore, the CPI(M)-affiliated student organisation, SFI, had infamously roughed up former diplomat T.P. Sreenivasan at an education summit in 2016, accusing him of selling the state’s education sector to foreign private players. Yet, in the 2024 budget, Balagopal made an announcement that contradicted this ideological stance against private universities.
Notably, many of CPI(M)'s allies in the LDF share similar ideological positions opposing entry of private universities in Kerala.
Following the CPI minister’s concerns, the bill has now been deferred for further discussions. The higher education minister was conspicuously absent from Wednesday’s cabinet meeting.
The Private Universities Bill resurfaced at a time when CPI(M) allies are already expressing discontent over being kept in the dark on multiple issues. Recently, LDF ally RJD, along with certain CPI leaders, openly opposed the government’s move to proceed with the Palakkad brewery project. Additionally, frustration is mounting within the LDF over CPI(M)'s reluctance to build consensus within the front before considering the imposition of a “user fee” on KIIFB-funded roads.
Apparently, the CPI’s top leadership and its minister have been on the defensive within the party for not adopting a cautious stance on the brewery issue, despite being aware that it would come up for cabinet discussion. It was in mid-January that the state cabinet granted preliminary approval to Indore-based Oasis Commercial Pvt Ltd to establish an ethanol plant, a multi-feed distillation unit, an Indian-made foreign liquor bottling unit, a brewery, a malt spirit plant, and a brandy/winery plant in Palakkad district. The CPI state executive reportedly noted that the CPI ministers failed to address the issue in the cabinet meeting from the perspective of its potential to trigger a severe water crisis and public backlash.
The cabinet approval for the brewery project sparked controversy, with the opposition alleging corruption. The cabinet’s decision put other LDF allies—who had previously led protests against Coca-Cola over excessive groundwater extraction— too on the defensive.
Prasad’s call for further discussion on the Private Universities Bill appears to be an attempt to shield the CPI leadership from internal backlash similar to the one faced during the brewery controversy.