Setback for DMK Govt: Prez returns Bill stripping Guv of varsity powers

In a setback for the DMK government of MK Stalin, President Draupadi Murmu has returned the Madras University Bill, stripping the governor of the power to appoint and remove vice chancellors.

The President has returned the Bill, passed by the Tamil Nadu Assembly in 2022, back to the legislature for reconsideration. Governor RN Ravi had forwarded it to the President when the State government moved the Supreme Court, as the Lok Bhavan was sitting on the Bill and inordinately delaying assent.

Advertisement

The Bill was first among the batch of legislations to strip the governor of the powers to appoint and remove VCs of state-run universities. It vests that power with the state government (Chief Minister)

This followed the Governor’s insistence upon having a nominee of the University Grants Commission (UGC) in the VC selection panel in addition to the nominees of the governor, government, and university syndicate.

The university statute doesn’t permit having a nominee of the UGC, but Ravi was adamant on that, citing a UGC guideline. The state government refused to heed that, resulting in many universities remaining headless.

According to official sources, the government is all set to get the Bill passed once again by the Assembly. They pointed out that the Bill is similar to the ones in Gujarat, Telangana and the neighbouring Karnataka, which vest the power of appointment with the respective state government.