Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar on Sunday said the strength of a democracy lies in institutions knowing and respecting their constitutional limits. He warned that democratic functioning suffers when one institution encroaches upon the role of another.

Arlekar’s remarks come amid an ongoing tussle between the Governor and the state government over vice-chancellor appointments in Kerala’s universities. The issue has reached the Supreme Court, which appointed a committee headed by retired Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia to recommend one name each for the post of vice-chancellor to two technical universities, in an effort to break the deadlock between the Governor and Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan.

Arlekar was speaking after conferring the Justice V R Krishna Iyer Award on former Chief Justice of India and former Kerala Governor Justice (retd) P Sathasivam. The award is instituted by the Legal Assistance and Welfare Trust (LAW Trust).

Referring to constitutional roles, Arlekar said Parliament and elected legislatures alone have the authority to amend the Constitution, while courts are entrusted with interpreting it. “Interpretation should not amount to amendment,” he said, adding that inconsistent verdicts on similar issues go against the spirit of the Constitution.

The Governor cited court rulings on vice-chancellor appointments to underscore his point. He referred to a three-member Supreme Court verdict in the Kannur University case, which upheld the chancellor’s primacy in the appointment process. However, he expressed concern that later judicial interventions appeared to dilute this position by allowing courts to constitute search committees, a responsibility that, he argued, rests with the chancellor under existing rules and University Grants Commission norms.

Arlekar also referred to his challenge before the Supreme Court against a Kerala High Court order that set aside the November 27, 2024, notification appointing Professor K Sivaprasad as vice-chancellor of APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University. The Governor, as chancellor of most state universities in Kerala, has been at the centre of the dispute over such appointments.

Accepting the award, Justice Sathasivam said the judiciary must remain committed to the humanist ideals of Justice V R Krishna Iyer, even as society becomes increasingly digital. Judges of the Kerala High Court H Nagaresh, K Babu and A Badarudeen were present at the event.