The Communist Party of India (Marxist) in Kerala, on Thursday, November 3 termed as "akin to yellow journalism" the Governor's remarks on the CMO’s (Chief Minister’s Office) alleged role in the gold smuggling scam and said that the Governor Arif Mohammed Khan himself has proved that he is part of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).
Lashing out at the CPI(M)-led government and the Governor over their ongoing fight, the opposition Congress sought to know if Khan has the courage to take action against the Left Democratic Front (LDF) government on the gold smuggling scam. The BJP, on the other hand, threw its weight behind the Governor and said that Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan should understand the limits of his own powers and also study what happened to former Kashmir chief ministers Mehbooba Mufti and Farooq Abdullah.
The political parties' reaction came hours after Khan raked up the gold smuggling controversy, accusing the CMO of "patronising" such illegal activities in the state. Speaking to reporters at New Delhi, Khan also said that though he has never interfered earlier, the alleged "patronising" of smuggling activities by CMO and people close to the CM are grounds enough for him to interfere now. He was responding to allegations of political interference in Vice Chancellor (VC) appointments levelled against him by Pinarayi and other LDF leaders at a convention in Thiruvananthapuram on Wednesday.
Reacting to his accusations and claims, CPI(M) state secretary MV Govindan said that Khan himself has proved he is with RSS and no one else needs to do that now. "Now it is up to him to decide whether he wants to resign," Govindan told reporters. Govindan also termed the statements of Khan being akin to "yellow journalism" and "substandard".
The CPI(M) state secretary also alleged that the Governor was deliberately trying to destroy secularism in the state and push the education system to a dangerous situation by removing VCs and Pro-VCs and appointing RSS persons in their place.
The Governor, using his powers as chancellor of the universities in the state, on Thursday appointed Professor (Dr) Ciza Thomas as Vice Chancellor of the APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University in Thiruvananthapuram pending appointment of a regular VC. The Governor made the appointment of Thomas, who is senior joint director of the Directorate of Technical Education, as VC by rejecting the Left government's recommendation to hand over the responsibility to state higher education principal secretary Ishita Roy IAS till a regular VC is appointed to the top post of the Technological University, official sources said.
Further, criticising the Governor for his comments against the CMO, CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury also said that Khan's statements were "baseless" and not befitting the office held by him. "There is a case going on and for the Governor to make such statements now is completely unacceptable, objectionable and wrong," he said.
CPI state secretary Kanam Rajendran said that Raj Bhavan has become 'Raaji' (resignation in Malayalam) Bhavan as "he (Khan) is always asking for someone's resignation". "Let him do what he wants using his authority and the Kerala government will face it in accordance with the Constitution and the law. Let us see how far this will go," he said.
Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president and MP K Sudhakaran, on the other hand, dared the Governor to match his words with action. "He is saying everyone is talking about the smuggling case and that he believes CMO is patronising such activities. If he is convinced about it, he should seek dissolution of the government or at the least ask the Centre for an investigation into the same. Does he have the courage or the backbone to do so instead of merely criticising the government?" he asked while addressing media at a press conference in the state capital.
Meanwhile, senior BJP leader from Kerala and the party's National Executive Member PK Krishnadas came out in support of the Governor by accusing the LDF government and the CM of challenging the Constitution and federalism of the country by their statements against Khan. Speaking to reporters at Kozhikode, he said that when the CM was questioning the limit of the powers and authority of the Governor, Pinarayi should also understand the limits of his powers by looking at the Indian map. Krishnadas said that Pinarayi belonged to the same category as Mufti and Abdullah and should study what happened to them.
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