A Chancellor and a politician: Crisis brews in Kerala's universities

Ever since he took over as the Governor of Kerala in September 2019, Arif Mohammed Khan has kept himself in the limelight with his shrewd, critical responses to the politics, policies and programmes of the Left Democratic Front government in the State. Thus, it came as no surprise when on December 8, 2021, Arif Mohammed Khan, who by virtue of his position is also the Chancellor of all the universities in the State, suddenly declared that he was having a “prick of conscience” and wrote to the Chief Minister declaring that he no longer wanted to continue as the Chancellor, thus bringing all important decision-making in universities in the State to a standstill. Once the universities come under the direct control of the government, there will be no scope for anybody to make allegations of political interference.” Amidst doubts raised by various quarters whether he was once again playing a political game against the LDF government, the Governor said that it had become impossible for him as Chancellor “to protect the universities from the baneful continuous political interference and erosion of their autonomy” and that he wanted to vacate the position of Chancellor. ‘A more serious issue’ Clearly, the Governor has put the LDF government in a fix by refusing to continue as Chancellor and thus creating a crisis in the administration of the State’s universities. Because it involves national institutions.” As both the government and the Chancellor came in for criticism from the opposition UDF parties, senior Congress leader Ramesh Chennithala issued a statement giving a clue to the resolution of the mystery and raising six questions, important among them, whether the Chancellor had given a direction to the Vice Chancellor of Kerala University to take steps to confer an honorary DLitt degree on President Ram Nath Kovind during his visit to Thiruvananthapuram on December 23; whether the Vice Chancellor had rejected the request because of the intervention of the LDF government?