Kerala Governor withholds Bill regularising medical college admissions

P Sathasivam (right), Kerala Governor resorted to the option of withholding the Bill. (Express Photo Kshitij Mohan)

Kerala Governor P Sathasivam on Saturday withheld the Kerala Professional Colleges (Regularisation of Admission in Medical Colleges) Bill, 2018, which was passed unanimously in the Assembly on Wednesday.

The Bill was meant to regularise the illegal admission of 180 students to two private medical colleges in the state in the academic year 2016-17. On Thursday, the Supreme Court had stayed an ordinance of the state government, which was issued to nullify the court’s earlier order cancelling the admission of the students of Karuna and Kannur medical colleges.

Kerala Law Minister A K Balan said that after the Assembly passed the Bill, the government sent it for the Governor’s assent as per Constitutional provision. The Governor resorted to the option of withholding the Bill, he said. The minister said the Governor’s action was Constitutional and legal. “The government does not have any disagreement with the Governor’s decision on the Bill. One experiment (passing the Bill) has been a failure. The government will deliberate with the Opposition on the options regarding protecting the interest of the medical students in these colleges. The efforts will continue. The Bill was passed considering the general mood that the students’ interest should be protected,’’ he said.