A blot on Kerala's higher education scene
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The positions and actions of the governors appointed by the central government in states ruled by non-BJP parties continue to be controversial. There is substance in the complaint of the state governments of the opposition parties that the governors act according to the whim and fancy of the central government and that the Raj Bhavans are behaving in a way that scant regard for justice, impartiality and the responsibilities of a constitutional institution. Kerala Governor Arif Mohammad Khan is of that class of respectable persons who is subject to such criticism. Complaints have been rightly raised that he has misused his position as chancellor of universities in the past. The resulting crisis continues to be intractable. While all the above is true, the comments and criticism he openly expressed before the journalists the other day cannot be accused of being irrelevant or untimely. It would be right to point out that the governor was forced to open his mind about the controversies and related facts that frequently arise in the field of education in Kerala.
Arif Mohammad Khan alleges that the situation in Kerala is such that any illegal activity can be done by becoming a member of a student organization. The idea is that no matter what wrong is done, the notion is that the union will protect it and the student body will protect it. When the governor points out that they are enjoying benefits from politics, it is clear that the what he has in mind is the scandalous allegations against SFI leader Nikhil Thomas, a postgraduate student of Kayamkulam MSM College. He is a failed B.Com student in the same college. However, the then principal reveals that he was given admission to M.Com because the college manager requested him on the recommendation of the party leader. For that purpose, the documents of getting degree from Kalinga University, Chhattisgarh were produced. However, the discrepancy in the record that he was a student at Kalinga University at the same time that he was a full-time student at MSM under Kerala University went unnoticed; or ignored. Moreover, Nikhil contested for the University Union and became a councillor. It is surprising that all these undeniable truths came out only with the revelations were made about an SFI woman named Vidya who forged documents showing her as a staff member of Ernakulam Maharaja's College and got a job in another college on the strength of that. Police have not located Vidya even after several days. Nikhil either has not been caught by the hands of the law as at the time of writing this. The circumstances make people believe that everything is because of the intervention of the party and the government. All these things are being exposed because the 'intra-party democracy' in the CPM has come out from behind the curtain.
It is expected that the accused in the unfolding incidents will be fully or partially brought before the law sooner or later. The important question that still arises is where is the 'world-class education of Kerala' that the party, the Chief Minister and the ministers in charge often boast about. This is the background to which the governor points out that the collapse of the higher education sector in Kerala is very serious. Achievements in the field of education seems to be eluding Kerala; He warns that those involved are gambling with the destiny of future generations. If this situation is convincing the new generation by implication that nothing will happen if they have organizational strength and authority, any job and status can be secured by obtaining fake certificates, who will believe the Kerala youth. And it is for the strongest student organisation to ponder whether the new generation will become a worthless commodity in the labour market. It is more so for the left progressive party and the government controlled by it, which strengthen that student organisation. By merely implicating the opposition parties and their student organization, the real crisis is not going to be resolved.