Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan Lashes Out At Governor For Demanding Resignations Of VCs

Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala Governor Arif Mohammed Khan was slammed by CM Pinarayi Vijayan on Monday for asking the vice-chancellors of nine state universities to resign.

The Governor, according to Vijayan, lacks such authority and is acting in defiance of both the Constitution and the fundamental principles of democracy.

The Chief Minister said that the Governor’s action infringed on both the autonomy of universities and the authority of a democratically elected government.

A day after Khan sparked a political uproar by demanding the resignation of the vice-chancellors of nine state institutions, Vijayan criticised the unusual action and accused Khan of “waging war” with the aim of “destroying” the state’s universities.

The Chief Minister stated that the Governor appointed the nine university’s vice chancellors and that if those selections were done improperly, the Governor bears the major responsibility. He also claimed that the chancellor lacks the ability to request their resignation.

Khan on Sunday demanded the resignations of the VCs of nine universities in the state in light of a recent Supreme Court decision that voided the appointment of the vice-chancellor (VC) of the APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University in this city for violating University Grants Commission rules.

The Raj Bhavan reported that Khan, who serves as the Chancellor of the state’s universities, also gave instructions for the resignations to be sent to him by 11.30 AM on Monday.