9 trustees of Gujarat Vidyapith resign over governor’s appointment as chancellor

9 trustees of Gujarat Vidyapith resign over governor’s appointment as chancellor

Subject : History

Context: Nine trustees of Gujarat Vidyapith, founded by Mahatma Gandhi in 1920, have tendered their resignations to protest against the recent decision of the governing council to appoint governor Acharya Devvrat as 12th chancellor of the university.

Concept :

What is the role of the Chancellor in public universities? 

• State public universities are established through laws passed by state legislatures.
• In most laws the Governor has been designated as the Chancellor of these universities.
• The Chancellor functions as the head of public universities, and appoints the Vice-Chancellor of the university.
• The Chancellor can declare invalid, any university proceeding which is not as per existing laws.  In some states (such as Bihar, Gujarat, and Jharkhand),
• The Chancellor has the power to conduct inspections in the university.
• The Chancellor also presides over the convocation of the university, and confirms proposals for conferring honorary degrees. (This is different in Telangana, where the Chancellor is appointed by the state government.)
• The Chancellor presides over the meetings of various university bodies (such as the Court/Senate of the university).  The Court/Senate decides on matters of general policy related to the development of the university, such as: (i) establishing new university departments, (ii) conferring and withdrawing degrees and titles, and (iii) instituting fellowships.

Does the Governor have discretion in his capacity as Chancellor?

• In 1997, the Supreme Court held that the Governor was not bound by the aid and advice of the Council of Ministers, while discharging duties of a separate statutory office (such as the Chancellor).
• The Sarkaria and Puunchi Commission also dealt with the role of the Governor in educational institutions.   Both Commissions concurred that while discharging statutory functions, the Governor is not legally bound by the aid and advice of the Council of Ministers.  However, it may be advantageous for the Governor to consult the concerned Minister.
• The Sarkaria Commission recommended that state legislatures should avoid conferring statutory powers on the Governor, which were not envisaged by the Constitution. The Puunchi Commission observed that the role of Governor as the Chancellor may expose the office to controversies or public criticism.  Hence, the role of the Governor should be restricted to constitutional provisions only.

Other recent development:

The West Bengal University Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2022 designates the Chief Minister of West Bengal as the Chancellor of the 31 public universities in the state.  Further, the Chief Minister (instead of the Governor) will be the head of these universities, and preside over the meetings of university bodies (such as Court/Senate).

Gujarat Vidyapith

• Gujarat Vidyapith is a university in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, India.
• The university was founded on 18 October 1920 as a ‘Rashtriya Vidyapith’ (‘National University’) by Mahatma Gandhi, the leader of the Indian independence movement.
• Mahatma Gandhi served throughout his life as the chancellor of the university.
• The university helped nationalists establish a system of education for all Indians, thus proving the country’s independence from British-run institutions and de-legitimizing the British Raj.
• Its foundation was one of the important event of a satyagraha initiative launched by Gandhi as a means to peacefully terminate British rule in India.
• The Gujarat Vidyapith became a ‘deemed university’ in 1963.
• It is funded and governed by the University Grants Commission, under the Union Ministry for Human Resources Development in New Delhi.
• Although considerably modernized in its structure and curriculum, the university maintains its commitment to Gandhian ideals, human studies, social service and development work.

Deemed University

• Deemed University is a type of higher education institute, it has been recognized by the status of “deemed to be university” under Section 3 of the University Grants Commission (UGC) Act, 1956.
• In broad terms, it means that the institution has been granted permission to offer its own degree programs, which are equivalent to those provided by regular universities.