Tripura assembly passes bill for private open university amid walkout by CPM, Congress MLAs

Opposition CPI(M) and Congress MLAs walked out of the Tripura assembly after Chief Minister Manik Saha rejected their demand to send a Bill for the formation of a private university to a select committee for scrutiny. 

When the Bill was presented to the House, opposition leader Animesh Debbarma, CPI(M) legislator party leader Jitendra Choudhury, and Congress MLA Sudip Roy Barman expressed strong reservations about clearing the Bill without proper scrutiny. 

Debbarma said they were not against the idea of a private open university in the northeastern state, but the proposal needed to be thoroughly examined by the select committee. Choudhury also supported Debbarma's concern about a private organisation establishing an open university in a state that already had three private varsities. 

"The Bill should be sent to the select committee for proper scrutiny because people don't know much about Himalayan Universal Educational Trust, a Delhi-based organization," Choudhury said. 

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He also mentioned how the ICFAI University and MBB University Bills were scrutinised by the select committee before being passed in the House. The Congress legislator also expressed his concerns and urged the chief minister to send the Bill to the select committee for scrutiny. 

"We are not asking for the Bill to be withdrawn. I request the chief minister to refer it to the select committee or experts for proper scrutiny. We can't allow anyone to jeopardize the future of the students," he said. 

In response to the opposition's concerns, the chief minister said the Himalayan Universal Educational Trust had experience running similar institutions in states like Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Sikkim, and Arunachal Pradesh. 

"The organisation has already purchased a 5.40-acre plot in Udaipur, Gumati district, according to UGC guidelines. They will not require any money to establish the open university, which will benefit students who were unable to complete college due to various reasons," he said. 

Finally, the Bill for setting up the Mata Tripura Sundari Open University was passed in the House amid CPI(M) and Congress MLAs staging a walkout.