Tamil Nadu Governor RN Ravi has leveled serious accusations against the DMK-led state government, alleging that police officers threatened several university vice-chancellors to deter them from attending an academic conference in Udhagamandalam. According to the Governor, these alleged threats led multiple state universities to withdraw from the two-day event. He claimed the vice-chancellors were pressured through both verbal warnings and written instructions reportedly originating from the state authorities.
While addressing the opening session of a conference involving vice-chancellors from state, central, and private universities in Tamil Nadu, Governor Ravi shared that one university head was being held at a police station at the time of his speech. He further claimed that some VCs who had already arrived in Udhagamandalam were confronted late at night by officers from the state’s intelligence wing. These officials allegedly warned the participants that if they attended the conference, they might not be allowed to return home or reunite with their families. The Governor said he advised the VCs to prioritize their safety and families.
He said, “Unfortunately, in this conference, the state universities are not participating because they have informed me in writing that they have been warned by the state government not to participate. As of now, one of our VCs is at the police station. Some vice chancellors had reached Ooty, and an unprecedented event occurred that has never happened before. There was a midnight knock on their doors, where the secret police, a special branch of the state, informed them that if they participated in the conference, they would not be able to return home and reunite with their families. I advised them to take care of their families and not jeopardize their interests.”
The Governor clarified that the event was entirely academic in nature, with the goal of enhancing the quality of education in Tamil Nadu and was not intended to serve any political purpose. “I hope good sense prevails because, essentially, this conference is meant to improve quality. There is no politics involved in it,” he added.
#JUSTIN மாநாட்டில் பங்கேற்கக்கூடாது என அரசு பல்கலை. துணைவேந்தர்களுக்கு மிரட்டல்
உதகையில் நடைபெறும் துணை வேந்தர்கள் மாநாட்டில் ஆளுநர் ஆர். என். ரவி பேச்சு#GovernorRNRavi #Ooty #VicePresident #News18Tamilnadu | https://t.co/3v5L32pe7b pic.twitter.com/0tdf7sOO9i
— News18 Tamil Nadu (@News18TamilNadu) April 25, 2025
The conference was also attended by the Vice President of India, Jagdeep Dhankhar, who addressed the gathering at Raj Bhavan in Udhagamandalam.
Expressing concern over the state of public education in Tamil Nadu, the Governor pointed out that many students in government schools were struggling academically. He claimed that since 2021, data has shown that a significant number of high school students are unable to pass basic classroom tests, and some are not even able to read textbooks intended for second-grade students.
Despite acknowledging the state’s impressive gross enrollment ratio—exceeding 50 percent—and the annual awarding of over 6,500 PhDs, the Governor criticized the academic standards. He highlighted that less than one percent of these doctoral graduates are able to qualify for the UGC’s NET-JRF exam, which evaluates research capability.
(With inputs from ABP News)
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