‘Who’s Creating Crisis?’: Kerala Governor Arif Mohammed Rebuffs State Govt Amid ‘Sitting Over’ Bills Row
Amid the row over Raj Bhavans of several states ‘sitting over’ bills, Kerala Governor Arif Mohammed Khan on Friday alleged the state government of ‘crossing line’ on numerous occasions and affirmed that he was acting in accordance with the Constitution. He further questioned if he had ever caused a crisis in the state.
His remarks came at a time when the Kerala government approached the Supreme Court raising the issue of the Governor not signing certain bills and delaying it indefinitely.
“Show me one instance where I have crossed the line. And how many times my own government has crossed the line, there is a long list. So who is creating the crisis?” Khan asked, alleging that the state has not been paying the pensions and salaries for quite some time. He also referred to Keraleeyam, a government-sponsored annual event, and said the state was ‘having big celebrations’. “We are having big celebrations. We are having swimming pools made at the cost of a million rupees,” he added.
On November 8, chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan said that Khan was bound to act according to the Constitution. The Governor had earlier accused the state government of using the legislature for purposes other than what it was meant for.
Khan said he acts according to the Constitution and will follow its spirit while disposing of his duties. He claimed that money bills cannot be passed in the state assembly without prior permission of the Governor.
“University bills are money bills and money bills cannot be passed by the Assembly without prior approval by the Governor,” he said.
Meanwhile, Raj Bhavans in several states have been locked in confrontation with the elected governments. In the last few months, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Punjab, besides Kerala, have approached the Supreme Court, seeking directives to their respective governors.
In a direction to the Punjab governor to ‘make a decision’ on the pending bills, the apex court expressed unhappiness with the conduct of both the Raj Bhavan and the state government. “Any attempt to doubt on the session of the legislature would be fraught with perils to democracy,” said the Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud-led bench.