Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala Governor Arif Muhammed Khan on Thursday refused to sign the Bill that seeks to remove the Governor from the post of chancellor of State universities. He signed all the other Bills that were tabled along with the same.

Recently, he sought opinion of the University Grants Commission (UGC) on the legality of the Bill passed by the Kerala Assembly, and whether such a law would run counter to the UGC’s norms.

He had also consulted his counsel in the High Court on how to proceed in the case of the Bill. Two vice- chancellors were removed from the post in the State on the ground that they were appointed in contravention of the UGC’s norms.

Last month the Kerala legislature passed the University Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2022, that seeks to amend eight Acts relating to different universities to remove Governor as the ex-officio Chancellor of universities in the state and appoint eminent academicians in the top post.

The drastic legislative bid was resorted to in the wake of tense ties between Khan and the Pinarayi Vijayan Government over a slew of issues, including those on university affairs.