Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar’s decision to refer the Kerala State Private Universities (Establishment and Regulation) Bill, 2025, to the President appears to have dashed the State government’s ambitious push to allow private universities in Kerala.
The decision, which caught the government off guard, has cast uncertainty over the launch of private universities by the next academic year. It also threatens to stall a major reform initiative of the Left Democratic Front (LDF) in the final year of its term.
