Thiruvananthapuram: A well-known classical dancer named Mallika Sarabhai has been appointed chancellor of Kerala Kalamandalam, a deemed-to-be institution of art and culture by the state of Kerala.

The Kerala government has modified the rules of Kerala Kalamandalam deemed-to-be-university to remove Kerala Governor Arif Mohammad Khan as its chancellor in November 2022.

The Kerala government issued an order that reads: "The Chancellor shall be an eminent person in the field of Art and Culture nominated by the sponsoring body, pursuant to clause 29.1.0 of the Memorandum of Association of Kerala Kalamandalam Deemed to be University for Art and Culture.

In light of the above, The government was pleased to appoint Mallika Sarabhai (Darpana, Usmanpura, Ahmedabad, Gujarat) as the chancellor of Kerala Kalamandalam Deemed to be University for Art and Culture.
Last month on November 21, Kerala Governor mentioned that he would not permit favouritism and nepotism in appointments in state universities.

When speaking to the media, the governor stated, "It is my responsibility to make sure that favouritism and nepotism are never used in hiring decisions. I won't let that happen as long as I'm here. Only qualified people who satisfy all UGC standards will be hired."

The governor said, "It demonstrates how ineffective the CM is if someone working in his office is telling the VC to choose his family. He is equally guilty if he is aware of it."

Earlier, the Kerala government sent an ordinance to Raj Bhavan for the removal of Governor Arif Mohammed Khan from the post of chancellor of the state universities.

On November 12, Kerala Raj Bhavan announced that it has received the ordinance removing the Governor from his position as chancellor at several universities.

On November 9, the Kerala Cabinet made the decision to introduce an ordinance removing Governor Arif Mohammed Khan from his position as chancellor.

Following the governor's request for the vice-chancellors of the state's nine institutions to resign, the cabinet made their choice.

The governor of Kerala has ordered the vice-chancellors of the following universities to resign from their positions: University of Kerala, Mahatma Gandhi University, Cochin University of Science and Technology, Kerala University of Fisheries and Ocean Studies, Kannur University, APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University, Sree Sankaracharya University of Sanskrit, University of Calicut, and Thunachath Ezhuthachan Malayalam University.

Later, the Vice Chancellors of nine universities filed a lawsuit against the Governor's directive to present their resignations at the High Court.

The Governor had also appointed Ciza Thomas as Vice Chancellor in-charge of the APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University in Thiruvananthapuram. 

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