The former Keralam Finance Minister, writing on Facebook on Wednesday, accused Thomas of owing her appointment to the Sangh Parivar and challenged her suitability to head APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University. She also holds additional charge of Sree Sankaracharya University of Sanskrit at Kalady.
Thomas rejected the criticism and maintained that her qualifications were open to scrutiny. She pointed to the selection processes for the technological university and the Digital University of Kerala, saying they had been initiated during the previous Left-led administration. Her response placed the dispute over academic merit alongside the political controversy surrounding university appointments.
Isaac alleged that Thomas had no patents to her credit and questioned the academic value of books associated with her name. He claimed that seven publications were compilations of essays by other authors which she had co-edited, rather than books of original scholarship. Those assertions were part of his political criticism, not findings from an independent assessment of her research record.
He also questioned how Thomas could oversee the Sanskrit university without, as he alleged, sufficient familiarity with Sanskrit language, literature, philosophy or the arts. His comments focused particularly on the responsibilities of a vice-chancellor entrusted with leading a specialised institution and supervising its academic affairs.
Isaac accused her of assisting attempts to bring Keralam’s higher education institutions under the ideological influence of the Sangh Parivar. He said appointments to vice-chancellorships and boards of studies associated with that political network should face academic scrutiny. No independent finding establishing his allegations of political favouritism was presented.
The exchange followed disciplinary measures against Students’ Federation of India activists at the Sanskrit university. The controversy centres on the suspension of 16 student activists amid protests on the Kalady campus. Isaac criticised the university’s handling of the students and indicated that he and other supporters would stand with those protesting the disciplinary action.
He also accused the administration of jeopardising students’ academic futures. The allegations came amid a dispute over whether suspended students should be permitted to take examinations, an issue that has reached the courts. The underlying student protest concerned campus facilities and the administration’s response to demonstrations.
Thomas defended the need for accountability, arguing that students should be encouraged to acknowledge mistakes and correct their conduct rather than be shielded from disciplinary consequences. She maintained that teachers had a responsibility to guide students, even when doing so required them to confront behaviour they considered unacceptable.
The vice-chancellor also raised questions about why academics from premier institutions, including the Indian Institutes of Technology, had not participated in the selection process. She suggested that the political atmosphere surrounding universities could deter potential candidates from seeking senior administrative posts.
Her professional record includes a doctorate from the Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru, and engineering degrees from the College of Engineering, Thiruvananthapuram. She has served as a professor, head of department, engineering college principal and senior official in the technical education directorate. These positions are documented in her published curriculum vitae, although their existence does not by itself settle the separate debate over selection criteria for university leadership.
Thomas previously served as acting vice-chancellor of APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University following an appointment by the then Governor in November 2022. A Kerala High Court judgment in May 2025 described that appointment as temporary, pending the selection of a regular vice-chancellor.
(The article ‘
‘ appeared first on Free Press Journal.)
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