Cong's urge to LDF govt to protect reservation in SFPC

By Staff
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Google Oneindia News

Thiruvananthapuram, Jan 9: The Congress in Kerala today urged the CPI(M)-led Left Democratic Front (LDF) Government to promulgate an Ordinance to protect reservation for the SC/ST and economically backward in forward castes in self-financing professional colleges in the state.

The Government should take immediate steps to resolve the crisis in the professional education sector in the wake of the admission procedures to the professional colleges starting from next week, Pradesh Congress president Ramesh Chennithala told newspersons after the first meeting of the Pradesh Congress Committee(PCC)'s political affairs panel.

''If the Government goes for an appeal in the Supreme Court, it will only lead to confusion among the students and the parents hampering this year's admission procedure,'' he said.

The Congress had voiced against sections 8 A, B and C in the controversial Kerala Self-financing Professional Colleges Act during the debates in the State Assembly, he said and added that the High Court verdict was against the LDF government's move against the minority's rights. The HC had quashed some of the sections in the Act as they were against the rights of the minorities, he said.

Moreover, the LDF had proved itself that it was against the minorities by filing an affidavit in the HC which said that the religious minorites did not have the right for reservation, as they were financially and educationally sound.

Noting that the Congress did not have similar views on all issues raised by the HC, he said the LDF was only reponsible for such a verdict.

The HC quashed four important sections in the Kerala Self-Financing Professional Colleges Act terming them as ''invalid and unconstitutional.'' It termed Sections 3, 7, 8 and 10, relating to admission procedures, fees structure, power of Government to decide the minority status of the colleges and reservation to various communities, including SC/ST as ''invalid and unconstitutional.''

The United Democratic Front(UDF) during the discussion of the Act in the assembly had asked for amending these controversial sections but the LDF, which had majority in the House rejected them through voting. During the discussions, State Education Minister M A Baby had said that the Act was drafted after consulting constitutional experts and said that the new Act would bring in transparency to all the issues regarding self-financing professional colleges.

The HC verdict had, however, proved it wrong, Mr Chennithala said and added the only solution to resolve the issue was to adhere to the UDF's policies regarding it. ''The UDF had put forward the 50:50 ratio regarding admission and fee structure, which is the only practical solution. The Congress' stand is that the poor students should not be denied professional education, as well as managements of the self-financing professional colleges should be able to run their institutions,'' he said.

On State Home Minister Kodiyeri Balakrishnan's statement that the Congress was demanding a CBI inquiry into the SNC Lavalin case to trap Defence Minister A K Antony, he said '' everyone knows who Mr Antony is and there is no need for Mr Balakrishnan's certificate for Mr Antony.'' Mr Chennithala also alleged that Mr Balakrishnan had tried to scuttle the Lavalin case from the very beginning. ''As a minister, Mr Balakrishnan's conduct is to protect the culprits in the Lavalin case and to scuttle the whole case.

It was the Electricity Board in which he was also an ex-officio member who gave consent for signing the MoU with the Canadian SNC Lavalin, he said. ''Everyone knows why he took over the Vigilance Department, which is now inquiring the Lavalin case, from the Chief Minister,'' he alleged.

The KPCC political Affairs Panel had been constituted for discussing political issues and also to help the party in its policy formation.

UNI

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