Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan reportedly rejected the demand and insisted on his constitutional right to drop or appoint ministers
Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan reportedly rejected the demand and insisted on his constitutional right to drop or appoint ministers
Kerala Governor Arif Mohammad Khan has thrown the Left Democratic Front (LDF) government into legal and political trouble by withdrawing his happiness visa to continue as Finance Minister KN Balagopal.
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, in a quick response, reportedly rejected the demand and insisted on his constitutional right to drop or appoint ministers. In a release to the Raj Bhavan, Mr Vijayan reportedly said that the Chief Minister’s advice binds the Governor.
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The government believed that the “Governor’s pleasure” was withheld from the Chief Minister’s advice as per the Constitution.
Therefore, Mr Khan lacked the constitutional right to withdraw his pleasure without the concurrence of the Chief Minister with regard to the continuation of a minister or cabinet in office.
hot letter
In a strongly worded letter to Mr. Vijayan, Mr. Khan took strong objection to Mr. Balagopal’s alleged statement that those who were used to practicing in places like Uttar Pradesh would not understand the democratic nature in which Kerala universities function. .
Mr Khan said Mr Balagopal had made the remarks indirectly at the Kerala University’s Karyavatam campus function.
“Though the chief minister was silent, there were comments against the governor by ministers who spoke at the ceremony. Ministers R. Bindu and KN Balagopal spoke without mentioning office or name. People familiar with universities in the states said KN Balagopal For universities like Uttar Pradesh, Kerala it will be difficult to understand.”
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‘Against national unity’
Mr Khan quoted several newspaper reports, prominent among them Hindu, to make his case against the Minister. He accused Shri Balagopal of promoting regionalism instead of promoting national integration.
The minister’s remark “tries to create a rift between Kerala and other states of the Indian Union and presents a false impression that different states of India have different systems of higher education”.
Mr Khan said Mr Balagopal’s statements “not only challenge national unity and integrity but also challenge the constitutional convention that mandates that the governor of every state be from outside the state”.
‘Breach of oath of office’
Mr. Khan wrote in some bittersweet words: “The alleged statements of Mr. KN Balagopal are nothing short of a breach of the oath made by me. A minister who deliberately violates the oath and undermines the unity and integrity of India is mine. Cannot enjoy. Anand. In these circumstances, I am left with no option but to state that Mr. KN Balagopal has stopped enjoying my pleasure. I hope you (Chief Minister) take this matter seriously. and will take constitutionally appropriate action, he said.
seditious remarks
Mr Khan said education and law ministers have made personal attacks against him. “I wish to ignore him as he has hurt me personally, but if I do not take cognizance of Mr. KN Balagopal’s seditious remarks, it will be a serious lapse of duty on my part”, he said.
The government felt that Mr Khan was reading unintended meaning into Mr Balagopal’s words, and that the minister had not allegedly defamed the governor’s office.
Sarkar-Raj Bhavan Run-in
In the backdrop of Mr Khan’s latest tussle with the government, his insistence that the continuance of nine vice-chancellors of state universities was untenable as the Supreme Court had not considered the selection process as per the University Grants Commission (UGC) norms.
Mr Khan argued that the Supreme Court’s appointment of MS Rajshri as APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University (KTU) Vice-Chancellor applied to other university heads elected through the same process. Therefore, the legal effect of his continuance in office was from inception (nil from the outset).
Mr Khan, who is the chancellor of universities, waged a legal and political battle with the government by advising the vice chancellors to submit their resignations before 11.30 am last Monday. Giving temporary relief to the Vice Chancellor, the High Court issued a show cause notice to the Governor. The Raj Bhavan has set November 3 as the deadline for their reply.
full relationship
Mr Khan’s refusal to sign the Kerala University Laws (Amendment) Bill and the Kerala Lokayukta (Amendment) Bills into law was one of several sore points between the Raj Bhavan and the government. Mr Khan had earned the ire of the Left Democratic Front (LDF) by challenging the unanimous resolutions passed by the Kerala Assembly against the Citizenship Amendment Act and the Centre’s agricultural laws.