Vijayan slams Governor’s quit order to 9 VCs; Kerala HC to hear petitions

The Kerala High Court will hold a special sitting on Monday evening to consider petitions challenging Governor Arif Mohammed Khan’s controversial order to the vice-chancellors of nine universities to quit by 11.30 am on Monday (today).

Citing a Supreme Court order, Governor Khan has claimed that the state government has no authority to appoint university VCs and ordered nine appointed by the state government to quit. According to him, those appointments are his responsibility. Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, on the other hand, has asked the VCs to stay put and ignore the order.

Slamming the order as “unconstitutional,” Vijayan has accused Khan of making “arbitrary use of powers that he simply does not possess.” He also accused the governor of acting as a “tool of the Sangh Parivar” and “waging war” to “destroy” Kerala universities.

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Vijayan also said the SC order the Governor had cited was only valid for the APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University and did not apply to other universities “by any stretch of imagination.” Besides, he added that the tech university issue was not yet settled, as the state would file a revision petition against that order.

“Arbitrary, illegal, and politically motivated”

The VCs who have been asked to quit include those of the University of Kerala, Mahatma Gandhi University, Cochin University of Science and Technology, Kannur University, APJ Abdul Kalam Technical University, Shree Shankaracharya University of Sanskrit, University of Calicut, and Thunchath Ezhuthachan Malayalam University.

“The Governor has no authority to give such a direction. This is arbitrary, illegal, and politically motivated. They want to control and destroy the higher education system of Kerala,” said CPI(M) leader Sitaram Yechury.

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“They want to appoint RSS workers there and control the higher education system so that they can propagate Hindutva ideology in educational institutions. It will be challenged in court, as the Constitution does not permit the Governor to issue any such order,” he added.

“Onus on Governor himself”

Vijayan, often at loggerheads with the Governor, alleged that the latter’s move encroached on the powers of a democratically elected government and universities that are supposed to be academically independent. “No one who respects democracy can accept such overbearing tendencies,” he said.

“The office of the Governor is not to put the state government in crisis or to act against the government. The powers and duties conferred on the Governor by the Constitution are to preserve the dignity of the State, the people, and the Constitution,” he added.

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“According to the Governor, the VC appointments were made in all these nine universities without following the UGC (University Grants Commission) rules. In all the nine universities, the Governor, as the Chancellor, is the appointing authority. If the VC appointments were made illegally, then the primary responsibility lies with the Governor himself,” Vijayan said.

The SC order Khan has cited quashed the appointment of the VC of APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University for being contrary to UGC rules.

“He must face protests”

Pointing out that all the VCs appointed to the state varsities were brilliant academics, Vijayan said they could be removed only on two grounds—misbehaviour and misappropriation of funds. “Even when such allegations are made, a senior SC or HC judge conducts an inquiry. The VC is removed only when the charges are proved,” he argued.

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Replying to a question at a Press briefing, he said the government had no intention yet to petition the President to recall the Governor. “But this is a democratic country. There will be protests. He will have to face those,” he added.

The ruling Left Democratic Front has decided to carry out protests across the state universities next month.

(With agency inputs)