Left party blames Kerala minister for making higher education costly for poor

The Communist Party of India (Marxist) on Tuesday accused Higher Education Minister Roji M. John of trying to hurt government and aided colleges that give low-cost education to poor and backward students. CPI(M) State secretary M.V. Govindan said in a press meet that the minister is letting private self-financing colleges start new courses, hire teachers, and charge very high fees without any checks.

Reservation and PSC

Mr. Govindan stated that these steps break constitutional reservation rules for Dalits and backward classes by letting private colleges bypass the Public Service Commission. He also claimed the minister used the political line of the university Vice-Chancellor, who was picked by the former Governor, and told suspended students of Kalady Sanskrit University to say sorry to take their exams. Mr. Govindan added that the government is hurting the credibility of the PSC through an unconstitutional Crime Branch probe based on right-wing media reports, which could lead to unfair backdoor jobs.

Context

The Public Service Commission is a constitutional body responsible for selecting candidates for civil service jobs in the state through transparent exams. Debates over private college fees and reservation policies often spark political friction between ruling parties and opposition groups in the state.