Overview

• At the 32nd convocation of Manonmaniam Sundaranar University in Tirunelveli, PhD scholar Jean Joseph walked past Governor R.N. Ravi and received her degree from Vice-Chancellor N. Chandrasekar.
• Jean Joseph said she refused the gubernatorial conferment because she views Governor Ravi as acting against the interests of Tamil Nadu and its people.
• Video of the event circulated widely as neither university officials nor the governor’s office offered a public comment.
• The DMK government and allies in the INDIA bloc, including Congress and leftist parties, have pledged to skip the governor’s Independence Day reception and upcoming university convocations in protest.
• The convocation defiance intensifies a long-running dispute over gubernatorial discretion in legislative assent and university governance despite a recent Supreme Court ruling that curtailed those powers.