Will consider universities bills without bias when placed before me: Jagdeep Dhankhar

The Governor’s statement came after a delegation of BJP MLAs led by Leader of Opposition Suvendu Adhikari met him at the Raj Bhawan and expressed their concern over the Trinamool Congress government’s move to “create a new post making a single person both the Chief Minister as well as the Governor of West Bengal”.

Addressing mediapersons at the Raj Bhawan, Dhankhar claimed that the legislations were brought and passed to divert people’s attention after the Calcutta High Court found irregularities in the recruitment of teachers in state-run and aided schools.

“I will consider these Bills legally; and according to the Constitution, education is on the concurrent list. I will consider these Bills without any rancour, anger, bias or prejudice and in the perspective of the University Grants Commission Act after taking note of Supreme Court decisions. I will act 100 per cent in accordance with the law,” he said.

The concurrent list consists of subjects of common interest to both the Union and the states. Both the Parliament and the state legislatures can make laws on the subjects included in this list, but in case of a conflict between the Union and the State law relating to the same subject, the Union law prevails over the state law. It includes a subject like education.

In the ongoing monsoon session of the state Assembly, bills have been passed to replace the Governor with the Chief Minister as chancellor in the state-run universities and the state education minister as a visitor to private universities.

“This can’t happen. We are a society governed by law. Your Governor is a servant of the Indian Constitution and the people of West Bengal,” said Dhankhar.