Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar should examine if he is fit to continue in his post in the wake of the Supreme Court’s “sharp criticism” on the delay in the appointment of Vice-Chancellors to Digital University Kerala and APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University, Minister for General Education V. Sivankutty has said.
Addressing presspersons in Tirur on Saturday, the Minister said the Governor should seriously think whether to engage in an unnecessary legal fight with a State government that has been democratically elected. The apex court itself pointed out that a search-cum-selection committee, headed by retired judge Sudhanshu Dhulia, was appointed to recommend names for appointment as V-Cs to the two varsities with the concurrence of all parties in the case. The report of the former judge could not be treated by the Governor as an ordinary piece of paper in his capacity as Chancellor. The former judge had handed over the report to the Chief Minister, who, in turn, forwarded it to the Governor. However, Mr. Arlekar had not looked into the report, forcing the State to turn to the Supreme Court again, Mr. Sivankutty alleged.
The argument of the counsel appearing for the Governor that though the report was received, the entire record was not handed over was strange. However, the State government had informed the court that the entire record had been sent to the office of the Governor. The Governor should be ready to correct his stance of delaying appointments and failing to discharge Constitutional responsibilities, Mr. Sivankutty said.
Published – November 29, 2025 06:06 pm IST
