The recent submission by Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar, governor, Kerala, to the Supreme Court of India, contending that the chief minister of Kerala has no role in the appointment of vice chancellors of A.P.J. Abdul Kalam Technological University and Digital University Kerala, is a continuation of the battle for absolute control of universities.
The submission has several implications, each more worrying than the other. One, it shows how recent governors are being cast in the role of confirmed political and ideological adversaries of an elected state government – as seen in Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and, to some extent, West Bengal. Two, university heads no longer need to be hands-on, distinguished academicians with a broader profile and vision, and strong managerial skills, rather than political appointees of the state or the Union. And, three, Opposition-led state governments too want a share of the pie and are against having governors as chancellors of state universities – one of the few other domains where governors have a strong say. Punjab and West Bengal, for instance, have passed a law making the chief minister, the chancellor.
Arlekar had appealed against an attempt by the court to break the long-standing impasse over VC appointments to these universities by guiding the creation of search-cum-selection committees and laying down rules. The governor submitted that the 2018 UGC rules for search-cum-selection committees mandate persons of eminence in higher education and must not be connected in any manner with the university or its colleges. Thus, according to his submission, the chief minister, as someone intimately connected to all such institutions in the state, had no role.
The draft 2025 UGC Regulations, in fact, take this further by divesting state governments of a role in appointing VCs and bringing it under the chancellor’s purview. While the court will rule on the merit of Arlekar’s position, it is worth noting that governors in states ruled by the BJP or its allies do not seem to have such problems with the governments they nominally head.
Political agents
Governors were originally instruments of colonial power and were retained by independent India. From the very beginning, however, they have often acted as political agents of the ruling party at the Centre. Over time, Central and state legislation defined and restricted the discretionary powers of governors, which were vested in them by the Constitution. After Independence, some state governments retained the colonial-era practice of having governors as heads of universities – to continue the stated intention of ensuring independent higher education as well as to have a ‘father figure’ or a wise elder.
However, states like Kerala passed Acts, such as those for A.P.J. Abdul Kalam University, specifically defining who the chancellor will be. The logic: The governor owes his or her position as chancellor of a university to the respective state government.
But, with the Supreme Court circumscribing the gubernatorial powers regarding the signing of bills into law in the case of Tamil Nadu, the dice seem to have been loaded against the Centre. At the core of the court judgment, which deemed 10 bills withheld by Governor R.N. Ravi as having received assent, is the transfer of authority to appoint and remove VCs of 13 state-run universities from the governor to the Tamil Nadu government. While the governor will remain the chancellor of these universities, his role will now be largely ceremonial, stripped of almost every power that was vested in him so far. The state government will now assume the authority to appoint VCs.
Bills relating to the functioning of universities replace the term ‘governor’ or ‘chancellor’ with ‘government’ in the relevant legislation. Besides, the governor will no longer be empowered to appoint his nominee to the search committees constituted for VCs, as the government will appoint two of the three members, with one member chosen by the respective universities.
The legislation states that the search committees will submit their reports to the government instead of the governor. The VCs will have to submit their resignations to the state government, which will be the only authority empowered to remove them from their posts.
When the changes come into effect, the Tamil Nadu government will have absolute control over the functioning of universities, including the appointment and removal of VCs, even as the governor remains the chancellor.