The United Democratic Front (UDF) on Thursday gave a new turn to its ongoing agitation related to University College and Kerala Public Service Commission (PSC) by deciding to organise a blockade of the State Secretariat on July 25.
It demanded a detailed investigation by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) into the answer sheet and recruitment rows, changing its earlier stand for a judicial inquiry since the case had developed into a major scandal. The Opposition coalition will also organise a Janakiya Jagratha Sadas, a conclave of experts in the field of education, as part of its attempts to put the LDF government on the mat.
Leader of the Opposition Ramesh Chennithala, while addressing a press conference here soon after a meeting of coalition leaders, said the UDF had dropped its earlier demand for a judicial inquiry and was now seeking a CBI probe since the dimension of the case had changed from a mere criminal case related to stabbing a student into a major admission-examination- recruitment racket that had a lasting impact on the credibility of the University of Kerala and a constitutional body such as the PSC.
Mr. Chennithala accused the CPI(M) leadership of tampering with the university procedures right from admissions to conduct of examinations, besides influencing the PSC to ensure smooth passage of leaders of its feeder organisation, the Students Federation of India (SFI), in examinations and recruitment.
The very idea of preventing the functioning of other students’ organisations was intended to perpetuate the corrupt practice in government colleges, he said. In the case of the PSC, he alleged that question papers were being framed by teachers belonging to a particular organisation and questions were made available to favourites.
Mr. Chennitala said Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan’s stand on these issues was questionable. He continued to view the ongoing issue as a mere criminal case. The Chief Minister’s action in several cases that hit the headlines in recent days were aimed at protecting the accused in the case.
The UDF also rejected the probe by the Kerala University Syndicate subcommittee into the recovery of answer sheets. Such a probe was inane since the Syndicate was packed with CPI(M) members, he said.
