“RN Ravi’s VC Meet DMK”

“RN Ravi’s VC Meet DMK: A Prelude to Confrontation with DMK?”

Tamil Nadu Governor R N Ravi’s plans to convene a three-day conference of Vice-Chancellors in Ooty later this week has set off a new worry for the BJP and its allies in Tamil Nadu.

With the Supreme Court recently ruling that Governors cannot indefinitely sit on Bills,

there is a worry among National Democratic Alliance (NDA) parties and allies that this April 25-27 conference in the hill station will appear to be defiance on the part of the Governor, thus feeding the DMK’s federalist campaign and putting them in a tight spot.

Among the 10 Bills over which the court pulled up the Governor are significant amendments to how vice-chancellors are appointed to state universities.

The Governor’s proposed conference comes days after Chief Minister M K Stalin chaired a meeting of state university Vice-Chancellors and registrars on April 16. This has sparked criticism not only from the DMK-led ruling coalition and the Left, but has also caused concern in the RSS-BJP and among the BJP’s allies, including the AIADMK and the PMK of S Ramadoss.

“Even after the Supreme Court verdict favored the Tamil Nadu government in matters of state autonomy, he (Ravi) went to meet Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankhar in Delhi.

SC upheld the Tamil Nadu Assembly

He invited V-P Dhankhar to attend the conference he is separately organizing for Vice-Chancellors in the state. How could he make such plans after the SC upheld the Tamil Nadu Assembly’s authority over university legislation? His attempt to stage a counter-conference, as if to undermine the one hosted by the state government two days ago, is a shadow play that essentially helps the DMK and hurts us.

Every move that smells of Delhi overruling Tamil Nadu will erode the NDA’s credibility here,” said an RSS functionary coordinating functions in Tamil Nadu.