Governor Arif Mohammed Khan appeared to intensify his feud with the government by stating his intention to launch a full-fledged enquiry into allegations of nepotism in appointments to universities on Saturday.
The Raj Bhavan will reportedly constitute a commission comprising legal and academic experts to probe such cases.
Meanwhile, Kerala University (KU) joined Kannur University in adopting a divergent stance against the Chancellor by passing a resolution against his ‘unilateral and undemocratic’ move to constitute a search-cum-selection committee for the next Vice Chancellor without the Senate’s nominee.
Ramping up his criticism of Kannur University Vice Chancellor Gopinath Ravindran’s conduct, Mr. Khan accused him of behaving like a “cadre member of the ruling party” to facilitate the appointment of Priya Varghese, wife of Chief Minister’s private secretary K.K. Ragesh, despite lacking the requisite teaching experience.
“He (the Vice Chancellor) shamefully went out of his way to ignore other meritorious candidates to please the powers that be,” the Governor alleged, while also holding the Vice Chancellor responsible for reconstituting the Board of Studies without the former’s approval.
In an apparent reference to the reported move by the government to curtail the Governor’s influence in the selection of Vice-Chancellors through legislation, Mr. Khan said the government could “forget about such things”. “You (the government) wish to amend the law, make it a five-member body so that you have the majority, and then force the Chancellor into putting his signature. Their intention is clear. They want to have Vice Chancellors who can appoint family members in various positions in universities,” he said.
Linking the growing debate on the ‘revdi’ (freebie) culture in the country with contentious appointments, the Governor said, “the State need to put a brake on the mental attitude that the government’s money is nobody’s money. It belongs to the people of Kerala and cannot be spend in any manner you like.”
Resolution
Demanding the withdrawal of the move to constitute the selection committee, the Senate of Kerala University, which held a special meeting on Saturday, called for reconstituting the panel with the Senate’s nominee.
Syndicate member K.H. Babujan said the Raj Bhavan decision violated the Kerala University Act of 1974 and was legally untenable. He said the Senate’s nominee was usually chosen through a transparent process and forming a committee without the member robbed the process of its democratic spirit.
However, an unrelenting Governor rubbished the Senate resolution by saying its failure to nominate its member three months after being informed was a reflection of its inefficiency.
