Page 16 - EW FEB 2022

Education News

universities tend to be too young and list. The amended Bill directs
narrowly specialised for 21st century the search committee to sub-
workplaces. FYUP which is norma- mit five names to the state
tive in the US — the most favoured government. From the list,
destination of Indian students the government forwards two
venturing abroad — will undoubt- names to the governor to ap-
edly provide undergrads the multi- prove one.
disciplinary foundational education The opposition’s attempt
they need. to launch a statewide protest
Autar Nehru (Delhi) after the winter session was
cut short due to rising Covid
MAHARASHTRA infections in January. Howev-
Deepening er, the Yuva Morcha and Akhil
Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad
(ABVP) — youth wings of BJP/
politicisation Governor Koshiyari: activist chancellor table conferences, organised student
RSS — have held several round
In July 2020, Uday Samant, high-
he opposition bharatiya janata er and technical education minister, signature campaigns and written let-
Party (BJP) is gearing to hit the ordered cancellation of final year de- ters against the Bill to the state’s chief
Tstreets with statewide protests gree college exams because of the ris- minister, education minister and the
against the incumbent Maha Vikas ing number of Covid-19 positive cases governor himself. The party has also
Aghadi (MVA) coalition government’s in the state. However, Koshiyari took reportedly briefed senior counsel to
proposal to curb the powers of the umbrage and wrote a scathing letter to draft a writ petition to be filed in the
governor in 11 state government uni- the chief minister Uddhav Thackeray Bombay high court.
versities. By law and convention, state protesting the minister’s intervention eanwhile, politically indepen-
governors appointed by the Central without consulting the chancellor’s Mdent and bona fide education-
government, are ex-officio chancellors office. According to the MVA govern- ists in the state are resigned to the
of all public universities in every state ment, despite the chancellor’s posi- continuous political interference in
of the Indian Union. tion being of a ceremonial figurehead, academia. Vice-chancellors who have
In late December, the MVA govern- Koshiyari has been taking more than the power to make large purchases
ment amended the Maharashtra Pub- passing interest in the administrative and appoint faculty have often patron-
lic Universities Act (MPUA), 2016 to affairs of public universities in Maha- ised party sympathisers and recruited
vest the state government with greater rashtra. party ideologues into faculty.
power while appointing vice-chancel- In October 2020, the Maharash- In this connection it is pertinent
lors, senates and managements of tra higher and technical education to note that in 2015, the BJP ap-
public universities. Under the amend- ministry constituted a 14-member pointed Dr. Sanjay Deshmukh, a
ment, the higher and technical educa- committee to suggest amendments former director (research) of the RSS
tion minister will assume the office of to MPUA, 2016 as also to implement think tank, Prabhodini Malghi, as
‘pro-chancellor’ of all state govern- the National Education Policy (NEP), vice chancellor of Mumbai University
ment universities. The opposition BJP 2020 in the state. The committee (estb.1857). Deshmukh has the dubi-
contends this amendment will curtail chaired by Sukhdeo Thorat, a former ous distinction of being the first VC in
the power of the governor/chancellor. chairman of UGC (University Grants Mumbai University’s 164-year history
The background of this latest face- Commission), suggested introducing to be sacked from office for incompe-
off between the MVA government and the position of pro-chancellor to cre- tence.
the BJP is that since November 11, ate “a balance of power” between the “The BJP which is criticising the
2019, when the Shiv Sena dramatical- governor and state government. MVA government for politicising uni-
ly ended its 25-year alliance with the Moreover, the Thorat committee versities and VC appointments needs
BJP and coalesced with the Congress suggested amendment of s. 12 of the treatment for political schizophrenia.
and the Nationalist Congress Party Act under which search panels to se- This party has blatantly appointed
(NCP) to form Maharashtra’s MVA lect vice-chancellors, submitted their RSS ideologues to high office in aca-
coalition, it has been at odds with shortlist directly to the chancellor’s demia. Way back in 2014, Dina Nath
governor Bhagat Singh Koshiyari, office. In the event the governor did Batra, an RSS ideologue who can’t
a former activist of the RSS, the ideo- not approve the names on the short- differentiate mythology from history,
logical mentor of the BJP which has list, he was empowered to direct the was appointed chairman of the Indian
been ruling at the Centre since 2014. search committee to submit a new Council for Historical Research. And

16 EDUCATIONWORLD FEBRUARY 2022