Kerala Government Toughens Stand Against Governor Arif Mohammed Khan

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Left Democratic Front (LDF) Government in Kerala has upped the ante against Governor Arif Mohammed Khan by seeking President Droupadi Murmu’s intervention in the crisis involving the Governor and the State government, at the root of which are Khan’s alleged gubernatorial excesses; the Governor is not even sparing varsities and students as he goes about settling scores with the state government.

Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, who dashed off the letter via the good offices of the Prime Minister, accused the Governor of failing to discharge his constitutional obligations and resorting to protocol violations. Vijayan sought the President’s intervention to end the crisis, including Governor Khan’s recall. And, just so that nobody throws a spanner, Union Home Minister Amit Shah has been kept in the loop.

Among the Governor’s protocol violations was an unannounced visit to the SM Street in Kozhikode. The letter also mentions the Governor stepping out of his vehicle while on the way to the Thiruvananthapuram airport and aggressive response to the Students Federation of India’s protests. Pinarayi alleged that the Governor was wanted to disrupt Kerala’s peaceful atmosphere.

The Government upped the ante against the Governor when the latter’s unusual communiqué saw “the beginning of the collapse of the constitutional machinery” in the State. The proximate provocation for the Governor’s ire was the black flag demonstrations the SFI. The communiqué alleged that the CM was stopping the police from removing the SFI-sponsored banners against the Governor on the Calicut University campus.

The SFI has been protesting against the Governor for trying to stack the Senates of state-funded universities with Sangh Parivar nominees. The LDF Government was also irked by the Governor’s hint that the “dismal financial health” of the state might warrant the imposition of financial emergency in Kerala.

The Governor had gone to the extent of setting a 10-day deadline for the Government to apprise him of the State’s financial health. If the Government failed to do so, he would draw his own conclusion. The “unusual behaviour” of the Governor included throwing a tantrum at the media. They were told to “get lost” by the Governor gone berserk.

In his strong response, the Chief Minister said that although the Governor used bad words against the students, the latter exercised restraint. The student community has refused to walk into the trap set by the Governor, who was trying to ignite a conflict in the State.

It gets clear that the governor’s aim is to seek central intervention in the name of a breakdown in the state’s law and order, when in reality, there is no breakdown of law and order in the state, the Chief Minister said. The fact that he could “freely walk” in the famous SM Street in Kozhikode disproved his claim of a law and order breakdown in Kerala.

The Chief Minister said the Governor was withholding bills passed by the State Assembly and coming in the way of implementing the Government’s people-friendly measures. He signed a few bills out of the eight he was sitting on only after the Supreme Court took him to task.

The Governor also committed contempt of court when he referred a few bills to the President after refusing to sign them for over two years! This showed his contempt for the judiciary. Meanwhile, the SFI has decided to stage a sit-in in front of the Calicut University’s gate, also stage a historic protest in the days to come. The protests would continue until the Governor is removed.

Significantly, the Governor has not reacted to the SFI’s allegation that he is trying to bring RSS influence into the University. The Governor has also refused to disclose the source from where RSS workers were recruited for nomination to the University Senate. There are grounds to believe that the Governor is hand in glove with the RSS to saffronise education in Kerala. These RSS tactics are unlikely to succeed in Kerala, which has a glorious tradition of upholding secular values in the teeth of hostility from communal forces. (IPA Service)