KOCHI: In yet another setback for former Finance Minister K M Mani, who is struggling to come out of the shadows of the bar bribery case, the Cochin University of Science and Technology (Cusat) is likely to rename the Centre for Budget Studies at the Cusat, which is named after him.
Established with the aim of critical evaluation of state budgets, the Centre for Budget Studies was launched by Vice-president Hamid Ansari at the Assembly Hall in Thiruvananthapuram. Mani is the longest serving member of the Kerala Assembly.
“When the matter came up for discussion at the Syndicate meeting on Saturday, it was decided to check under what circumstances the study centre was named after K M Mani. If the centre was named by the government, government clearance is required to change it. If it was the Syndicate that fixed the name, it has the power to change it. A decision on the matter will be taken at the next Syndicate meeting,” said Cusat Vice-chancellor J J Letha.
The general feeling at the Syndicate was that the study centre should not be named after a person who is facing corruption charges. “If the centre is renamed, it would be known as the Centre for Budget Studies,” added the VC. The official website of the Cusat states that it was the former Syndicate that decided to name the study centre as the KM Mani Centre for Budget Studies.