The governor-government tussle in Kerala took an extraordinary turn on Wednesday when Governor Arif Mohammad Khan sent a letter to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan saying Finance Minister K.N. Balagopal has ceased to enjoy the former’s “pleasure.” The governor’s letter states that minister Balagopal tarnished the image and lowered the dignity of the governor's office with his “disturbing” comments. The letter also noted that Balagopal made comments that would “stoke the fire of regionalism and provincialism” and that if it goes unchecked, it may have a “corrosive and baneful influence on our national unity and integrity”.
The governor also alleged that the minister deliberately violated the oath of office and undermined the unity and integrity of India. The letter ends by saying Pinarayi Vijayan must “consider the matter with the seriousness it deserves” and take action which is “constitutionally appropriate,” against the minister.
Khan took offence to a comment made by Balagopal on October 18 while talking at an event at Kerala University’s Karyavattom campus. The minister had said those who come from places like UP may find it tough to understand universities in Kerala, indirectly hinting at the governor-government tussle in the higher education domain. “Security guards of the vice-chancellor of Banaras Hindu University had shot down five students. Then I was an MP and had gone there. The vice-chancellor had 50 to 100 security guards. This is the situation in many universities there,” Balagopal had reportedly said.
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The governor termed the remarks as something that sought to create a wedge between Kerala and other states. “Shri Balagopal seems to be blissfully unaware that Banaras Hindu University is a central university and it does not come under the administrative control of UP government and it had more vice-chancellors from other states including southern states than from UP,” the governor noted in his letter while declaring that Balagopal ceased to enjoy his pleasure.
Constitutional experts say the pleasure doctrine exists only in the constitutional sense and that no governor can unilaterally remove a minister from his post. They also point out that the power to demand resignation from a minister rests with the chief minister and not with the governor, and that the current letter won’t result in the resignation of the minister if the chief minister does not ask for it. CM Pinarayi Vijayan has already clarified that he will not remove Balagopal from the cabinet, and no further action needs to be taken on the governor’s letter.
Former Supreme Court judge Justice K.T. Thomas, however, told THE WEEK that if someone files a quo-warranto writ petition in the High Court challenging the minister’s right to stay in the post, then his future would depend on the decision of the court.
Meanwhile, the leaders from both the ruling front and the opposition came out against the governor’s latest move. CPI state secretary Kanam Rajendran called it a storm in the teacup. He also challenged the governor to remove the finance minister from the post.
Opposition leader V.D. Satheeshan reiterated his view that the entire conflict between the state government and the governor is an adjustment. “It is a fake encounter to fool the public,” he said while criticising the governor’s latest demand. “All these are drama, and the state government and the governor are together trying to divert the attention from issues like the CPI(M) leaders’ misconduct cases, poor law and order situation in the state and price rise.”
