THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Signalling a potential thaw in relations with the state government, Governor Rajendra Arlekar has appointed C R Prasad as the interim Vice Chancellor of Malayalam University. Prasad was one of the three names proposed by the ruling Left Democratic Front (LDF) government.
The government had submitted a panel of three nominees to the governor who serves as the chancellor of state universities following the retirement of the incumbent VC-in-charge, L Sushama, on 31 May.
The panel comprised C R Prasad, Senior Professor and Head of the Department of Kerala Studies at Kerala University; Lissi Mathew of Sanskrit University; and P S Radhakrishnan of MG University.
Although, under the rules governing Malayalam University, the governor does not require a government recommendation to appoint an interim vice chancellor, Arlekar selected Prasad a move seen as conciliatory, given Prasad’s known proximity to the ruling Left and his previous tenure as registrar of Kerala University.
Observers see the decision as a rare point of consensus in what has otherwise been a strained relationship between the Raj Bhavan and the LDF government on university appointments.