KOLKATA: After the state cabinet approved the proposal to appoint West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee as chancellor of state universities replacing governor Jagdeep Dhankhar, the Bengal government has started the process to remove the constitutional head of the state as visitor of private universities and replace him with the education minister.
The state’s move is said to be an attempt to shut the doors of private universities for Dhankhar.
"The state cabinet members have agreed on this initiative in principle. Now the proposal will be placed in the next cabinet meeting following which the government will moot a bill in the floor of the Assembly," said a source in the state government.
If the governor doesn’t give nod to the bill, the state government might introduce the new system through promulgation of an ordinance, said the source.
The same route will be followed to appoint Mamata as the chancellor of state universities replacing Dhankhar. On May 26, the state cabinet approved the proposal.
Under the existing rule, the governor, as the visitor of private universities, can preside at the convocation of the institutes for conferring degree, diplomas, awards and certificates of other academic distinctions.
The opposition parties criticised the latest initiative appointing education minister Bratya Basu as visitor of private universities and described the move as ruining the autonomous nature of the state universities. The proposal to remove the governor as the visitor of private universities in the state was a move to politicise the entire education system, they alleged.
"The ruling party wants to include politics even in the segment of education. This is unthinkable," said BJP spokesperson Shamik Bhattacharya.
Echoing this, the CPI(M)’s Sujan Chakrabarty alleged the TMC is not even sparing educational institutions.