President Droupadi Murmu on Monday, December 29, has returned the University of Madras (Amendment Bill) back to the Tamil Nadu government, stalling the move to alter the process of appointing vice-chancellors in state-run universities.
The Bill, passed by the Tamil Nadu Assembly in April 2022, sought to amend the University of Madras Act to hold the power to appoint and remove the Vice-Chancellor with the state government.
At present, this authority rests with the Governor, who serves as the ex-officio Chancellor of the University. The proposed amendment aimed to replace reference to the Chancellor with the Government in the Act.
Tamil Nadu Governor RN Ravi earlier reserved the Bill for the President’s consideration, stating that the changes could bring conflict with University Grants Commission (UGC) regulations and established norms governing vice-chancellor appointments.