On Monday, Kerala Governor Arif Mohammed Khan strongly criticised Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, accusing him of conspiring to physically harm the former. This accusation was about an incident where Khan's vehicle convoy was attacked by protesters affiliated with the Students' Federation of India (SFI), the student organisation linked to the Communist Party of India (Marxist), while he was en route to Thiruvananthapuram International Airport to depart for Delhi.
On Tuesday morning, the governor informed the media, "Police have been prevented from acting against these rowdies, criminals...This was the fifth incident...The rods on which they had the black flags, they were using those rods to hit the car...There are so many scratches on the car...Everything is being done under his direction [Chief Minister Vijayan]. It is he who has hatched this conspiracy...These people are working on the instructions of the Chief Minister...I do not try to scare anybody; there is no question I shall be scared of anything..."
Meanwhile, the CPI(M) came out in support of SFI. State Tourism Minister and the chief minister’s son-in-law, P.A. Mohammed Riyas, stated that SFI should be commended for their black flag protests against the governor. He said, “SFI is preventing the saffronisation of campuses.”
In the coming days, this new edition of tussle between the state government and the governor is likely to intensify as the Khan prepares to wield a new weapon—a petition asking him to recommend a proclamation for financial emergency in the state.
The current tussle is an extension of the long-lasting issues between Khan and the Pinarayi government over the last four years. But may be for convenience one can say that this current edition of tussle got ignited towards the last week of November. On November 29, governor Khan had been criticised by the Supreme Court for sitting over eight bills passed by the Kerala legislative assembly for two years. This was while considering a writ petition filed by the government against the governor. Interestingly on the eve of November 28—the day before the writ petition was being considered by the apex court—governor had send seven of these eight bills for consideration of the president, while giving assent to one bill, the Public Health Bill 2021.
Interestingly, just a day after the SC strongly criticised Khan for delaying the approval of bills, the Kerala government faced a significant setback as the apex court nullified the reappointment of Dr Gopinathan Ravindran as the vice-chancellor (VC) of Kannur University in Kerala. While quashing the Kerala government’s decision, the apex court observed "unwarranted intervention of the State Government" in Ravindran being reappointed through a notification dated November 23, 2021. Additionally, the court noted that the Chancellor (Kerala Governor) "abdicated or surrendered" the statutory powers for re-appointing the vice-chancellor. In the subsequent days, governor Khan said multiple times that the decision to reappoint Ravindran as Kannur University vice-chancellor was forced upon him by the Chief Minister's Office (CMO).
Empowered by the SC ruling, which affirmed the chancellor's autonomy in overseeing university matters, Governor Khan promptly took a contentious decision. He released a list of his nominees to Kerala University (KU) senate, sidelining the varsity’s recommendations. The ruling party and its affiliated student organisation vehemently opposed the move, asserting that these nominees are "pro-right wing."
On December 7, the SFI organised a day-night-long protest in front of Kerala University, condemning what they perceived as the "saffronisation" of the campus. Intriguingly, on the same day, the governor acquired another tool against the Pinarayi government—a petition from activist R.S. Sasikumar. This petition urged action to declare a "Financial Emergency in Kerala" as outlined in Article 360 of the Constitution of India. The precarious financial situation of the state is no longer a secret, with transactions in the state treasury halted on December 6, leading to an overdraft due to a severe financial crisis.
Petitioner Sasikumar implored the governor to recommend a proclamation under Article 360(1) of the Constitution. In the detailed eight-page request, Sasikumar also alleged that, even in this dire situation, "all the Ministers in the Council of Ministers are engaged in extravaganza, ignoring the financial crisis of the State." Earlier, there were already rumours of extravagant spending by the government during the Keraleeyam event in the first week of November and the subsequent Nava Kerala Sadas that commenced on November 18.
Sasikumar also noted that in a Contempt of Court proceedings [a case related to KSRTC pensions], before the High Court of Kerala, Chief Secretary Dr Venu V. made a candid confession that the state is going through severe financial crisis, finding it difficult to garner resources for day-to-day affairs; and therefore, that continued support to the KSRTC, for the purpose of paying pension has become difficult.
In response to this petition, the governor has requested a report from the state chief secretary, seeking clarification on 12 matters. However, to date, the chief secretary has not submitted the report. Political observers speculate that the chief secretary cannot indefinitely decide not to respond or delay his response. Additionally, providing a report admitting that the state is in a crisis would pose challenges for the government. In this scenario, he is expected to respond by attributing the precarious financial situation of the state to the alleged neglect of the Union government, a narrative consistently echoed by cabinet ministers and the chief minister in various Nava Kerala Sadas events.
Nevertheless, if the chief secretary's response also cites the neglect of the Union government, the governor is likely to seek further clarification, compelling the government to present detailed statistics to substantiate the claim. Today, Khan announced that he will wait for another 10 days for the report, and if not received, he will submit a report requesting the intervention of the Union government. This implies that the Christmas season is likely to be charged in the political landscape of Kerala.
