"Barge In If You Have Guts": Kerala Governor vs Ruling Left

Amidst the ongoing tussle between the governor and the Left government in Kerala, Governor Arif Mohammed Khan on Monday threw an open challenge to the ruling CPI(M) to attack him and blamed the ruling disposition for the collapse of the entire constitutional machinery in the state.

"Don't hold it CPI(M) march) on November 15, hold it on a day when I am in the Raj Bhavan. I will come there, let's have a public debate...vice chancellors are being stopped from performing their duty, law and order issues are being created, I am being threatened with dire consequences," Kerala governor Arif Mohammed Khan said in Kochi.

"They have initiated the process of collapse of constitutional machinery. I would urge them to go ahead, create more problems, barge into the Raj Bhavan if they have the guts, attack me on the road. Chief minister says that he doesn't know who I am, I know who he is. He is the one who tried to free a man who was charged of murder but was forced to return after an officer pointed a gun at him," he added.

The Secretary of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) M V Govindan on Sunday announced that they would organise a massive protest in front of Raj Bhavan on November 15 with along with other left parties against the governor alleging him of sitting over the bills for a long time.

"The government has sought legal opinion over the governor sitting over various bills and his attempts to unseat a majority of vice-chancellors in the state. Governor is not allowed to hold the bills for a long time. We will move to any extent to fight this uncertainty," CPIM chief secretary M V Govindan said.

Asked about his stand on the replies of vice chancellors (of six universities) to the show-cause notice, Governor Khan said that he cannot reply unless he goes through their responses.

"A situation is being created where the vice chancellors are being stopped from performing their duties. I am threatened of consequences. I am ready to face. Let them come where they want to come," Mr Khan said further underscoring that the government has not produced any instance of his interference in their administration.

"They said I am interfering in the administration, I say I will resign if they produce one instance, have they come forward with any? Everyone of you knows that they try to control Raj Bhavan, my personal staff, who are they to tell me who should I appoint?," he added.

On October 26, CPI(M) also staged a protest march to the general post office in Thiruvananthapuram against governor Arif Mohammad Khan over his order demanding the resignation of the vice-chancellors of the University of Kerala, Mahatma Gandhi University, Cochin University of Science and Technology, Kerala University of Fisheries and Ocean Studies, Kannur University, APJ Abdul Kalam Technical University, Sree Sankaracharya University of Sanskrit, University of Calicut and Thunchath Ezhuthachan Malayalam University.

Governor Arif Mohammed Khan alleged that a system of "oligarchy" is prevailing in CPI(M)-ruled state and it was evident from the incidents of party cadres being appointed in government jobs.

"People are now asking them if all the jobs in Kerala are reserved for CPIM cadres? Are university jobs only for powerful people in Trivandrum? They are going to people because this question is being raised in every home now and therefore in order to clarify their position, day after day new things are coming," Mr Khan said.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)