Thiruvananthapuram: Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said the attacks on Public Service Commission and University College in Kerala were part of the larger agenda of globalisation to destroy the credibility of public institutions. “There is a serious attempt to run down government-run public institutions and in the process encourage privatisation. Such a trend is widespread in the education sector,” the Chief Minister said during a post-Cabinet briefing here on Wednesday.
This was the first time the Chief Minister was going public after the stabbing incident in University College on July 13. The accused in the stabbing soon found themselves embroiled in what is now called the 'examination scandal'.
Blank answer sheets given out by the Kerala University to colleges for examination purpose were found in the house of Sivaranjith, the first accused in the stabbing case. Sivaranjith had also stood first in the rank list published by the PSC for civil police officers. Another accused in the stabbing, Naseem, bagged the 28th rank in the PSC list.
Pinarayi Vijayan categorically stated that the PSC had done no wrong. “There is nothing to probe about the PSC,” the Chief Minister said. He said the attack against the PSC should be seen as part of a dark design to dismantle constitutional bodies. He described the Kerala PSC as one of the most trusted institutions in the country. “Our PSC has carried out its constitutional mandate in the most unimpeachable manner. It is a model for PSCs in other states,” the Chief Minister said.
He said that posts in as many as 1742 categories in the state were filled by the PSC. It is the PSC that recruits people to posts from last grade to the deputy secretary. Besides finding the right candidates for 100-plus departments, the PSC is also responsible for picking up school and college teachers, and also uniformed personnel in police, excise and fire force. It also does the recruitment to universities and district cooperative bodies. “The PSC has been asked to do the recruitment for the newly-formed Kerala Administrative Service, too,” Pinarayi said.
He said PSCs in other states did not conduct the recruitment for public institutions. “Some do the recruitment only for Class I posts,” Pinarayi said. He said right from the preparation of the question paper to valuation were conducted independently by the Kerala PSC. “Unlike in other states, the PSC here do not sub-contract these works to private agencies,” the Chief Minister said and added: “A constitutional body that has been carrying out its affairs in the most exemplary manner is now being sought to be destroyed by a barrage of lies.”
About the University College, the Chief Minister said it was one of the finest government-run educational institutions in the country. He said the college had one of the finest pass percentages for degree and post-graduate courses.
Nonetheless, Pinarayi conceded that unfortunate incidents had occurred inside the college. “The government had taken strict action and no one would be protected,” he said. He also said such activities should be stopped and corrective measures taken. He also made it clear that other student bodies too had the freedom to form units in the college.
The Chief Minister felt that there was disproportionate focus on the college. “The presence of certain wrong tendencies is no excuse to do away with an institution with such a golden tradition. It is a classic case of gutting an entire building to kill a rat,” Pinarayi said. “Instead of trying to destroy an old institution with a brilliant academic record and a long heritage, there should be efforts to bring the college back to its old glory,” the Chief Minister said.
