In response to opposition from ruling party, Karnataka withdraws six private university bills

Due to opposition from the ruling BJP MLAs in the Karnataka Assembly as well as the opposition Congress and JD(S), the Karnataka government withdrew the bills to establish six private universities on Thursday. The GM University Bill, the Sapthagiri NPS University Bill, the Rajya Vokkaligara Sangha University Bill, the T John University Bill, the Kishkinda University Bill, and the Acharya University Bill were all introduced by Higher Education Minister C N Ashwath Narayan.

Today, as the GM University Bill was being discussed, Narayan stated that 40% of the seats would be regulated, while the fees for the remaining 60% will be determined by the Fees Regulation Committee’s consensus. Former Primary and Secondary Education Minister and Speaker Vishweshwar Hegde Kageri questioned whether these universities can be counted on to think outside the box.

‘Foreign universities are being overrun by our students. Why can’t we attract foreign students to study here by providing a top-notch education?’ stated Kageri. Congressman Priyank Kharge, who supports the Speaker, argued that the Academic Council should be changed and that vice chancellor appointments shouldn’t be influenced by politics. ‘You have rightly said that we lack the out-of-the-box thinking. We are creating highest unemployed engineers,’ Kharge said.

‘While the reputed universities of the globe show the Nobel laureates and prestigious award winners in their prospectus, the first thing our universities write is that the campus is spread of a sprawling 125 acres. Is this a university or a real estate business?’ Kharge pointed out.

H K Patil, a senior Congress lawmaker, advised the government to first introduce an ordinance rather than pass the bill without adequate deliberation.

Former Higher Education Minister and BJP MLA Aravind Limbavali claimed that the bill does not demonstrate any government control over these private universities. He went so far as to use the example of a private university whose vice chancellor was killed because the government had no say in the matter.