Kerala govt tables new bill curtailing Governor's powers as chancellor
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Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Wednesday tabled a new Bill in the Kerala Assembly aimed at curtailing the powers of Kerala Governor Arif Mohammed Khan as Chancellor, the News Minute reported.
Higher Education Minister R Bindu introduced the Bill in the Assembly.
With the amendment, the search committee will have nominees of the state government and State Higher Education Council which will in effect end the Governor's discretion in the selection process. Meanwhile, the opposition slammed the Bill as anti-constitutional and against the regulations of the University Grants Commission (UGC).
State Law Minister P Rajeev said that the Bill will not curtail the discretion of the Governor in the appointment process, and that the state has the right to amend the law.
Meanwhile, Governor Arif Mohammed Khan has reacted to the amendment Bill by saying that there was nothing wrong in it, and that the Assembly has the right to introduce it. However, he maintained that nepotism in the appointment of faculty to universities will not be allowed.
Talking to media, the Governor said, the Kannur University and the higher education sector in the State were in shambles.
Khan had recently stayed the appointment of Priya Varghese, wife of Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan's private secretary and former Rajya Sabha MP KK Ragesh, as Associate Professor at the Kannur University. The Governor also launched an attack on Kannur University Vice Chancellor Gopinath Raveendran, alleging that he was part of a conspiracy to attack Khan when he was invited to the varsity amid protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA).
The Kerala govt has allegedly also called a 10-day special assembly session after governor Arif refused to sign on request from the stage to give his assent to 11 ordinances that lapsed.