Guv reserves Bill to establish Kalaignar University for Prez nod

CHENNAI: In a fresh face-off with the CM Stalin-led DMK regime, Governor RN Ravi has reportedly reserved the Kalaignar University Bill for the consideration of the President.

Unmindful of the pressure from the State government, which even threatened over a month ago to move the court if the Governor continued to defer assent to the Bill, the Raj Bhavan has reserved the Bill for the President’s consideration. Reliable Raj Bhavan sources confirmed the ‘reserving’ of the Bill for the President’s consideration.

Adopted during the last session of the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly in April 2025, the Bill sought to establish a university in Kumbakonam in the name of former Chief Minister M Karunanidhi. Also, the proposed university will have the Chief Minister as the chancellor and the state higher education minister as the pro-chancellor. The clause of the Bill seeking to replace the Governor with the CM as the chancellor of the new university was said to be a major bone of contention between the Raj Bhavan and Fort St George. The government proposed to establish the new university by carving out of Bharathidasan University, which has jurisdiction over Ariyalur, Nagapattinam, Thanjavur and Tiruvarur districts.

Governor Ravi's shifting of the responsibility onto the Rashtrapati Bhavan comes against the backdrop of a vacation bench of the Madras High Court staying multiple amendment Acts empowering the state government to appoint the Vice-Chancellors of 18 state universities, and the Supreme Court granting deemed assent to 10 Bills inordinately delayed by the Tamil Nadu Governor. The Supreme Court, on April 8, 2025, also held Governor Ravi’s action of sending 10 Bills to the President as ‘erroneous in law’.

The Kalaignar University Bill was a political talking point even a couple of months ago, with CM Stalin publicly remarking that the incumbent Governor "hasn't changed" despite the apex court ruling on the authority of the governors to grant assent to Bills.

The State government had last month warned of seeking legal recourse, if necessary, to obtain the Governor’s assent to the Bill to establish the Kalaignar varsity. Higher Education Minister Govi Chezhiaan also stated that the Higher Education Secretary had sought an appointment with the Governor to discuss the issue, but did not receive a response.