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The participation of University Vice-Chancellors in Kerala in a programme organised by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) has sparked controversy in the state. Chancellors from three varisties, Kerala University, MG University, and Malayalam University, attended an RSS centenary event addressed by RSS Chief Mohan Bhagwat Thiruvananthapuram, on Saturday, June 13.
Kerala Chief Minister VD Satheesan said he views this with utmost seriousness, and the three Vice-Chancellors must apologise to Kerala. He also said that any action that promotes communalism, regardless of who is responsible for it, is unacceptable.
The event was conducted at Uday Palace convention centre and the media was banned from attending the event, as per reports.
The three VCs who attended the function are Kerala University VC Dr Mohanan Kunnummal, MG University VC Pro D Mavoothu, and Malayalam University VC Dr CR Prasad.
“The VCs have committed a grave lapse. Their action is inconsistent with Kerala’s educational tradition and the dignity of the office of VC. The people of Kerala hold the position of VC in high regard. By participating in the programme of an RSS leader who espouses extreme communalism, they have undermined that respect. Any action that promotes communalism, regardless of who is responsible for it, will not be accepted. Nor will it be tolerated,” VD Satheesan said on a Facebook post.
The Student Federation of India (SFI), the student wing of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) [CPI(M)], also criticised the VCs for attending the RSS event and said their participation is a challenge to secular Kerala. SFI also said that the VCs arrived in official vehicles by violating established norms.
“This is yet another example of VCs in Kerala acting in support of the Union government’s efforts to saffronise universities and constitutional institutions in accordance with the RSS vision,” SFI said in a statement on Facebook.
This is not the first time the VCs in Kerala have attended an RSS function. Last year, in July, four university VCs had attended ‘Gyan Sabha’ (Knowledge Conclave), organised by the Shiksha Sanskriti Utthan Nyas (SSUN), the education wing of the RSS.
They included Dr Mohanan Kunnummal, VC of Kerala Health Science University; Prof P Raveendran, VC, University of Calicut; Professor Saju KK, VC, University of Kannur; and Professor A Biju Kumar, VC, Kerala University of Fisheries and Ocean Studies (KUFOS). Several faculty members of universities across Kerala, along with representatives of private colleges had attended the event.
