Kerala Govt’s Ordinance Seeking Removal of Governor as Chancellor of Varsities Sent to Raj Bhavan

Thiruvananthapuram: Days after the State Cabinet’s decision to seek Governor’s removal from the post of Chancellor of universities in the state, the Kerala government on Saturday dispatched the Ordinance to Raj Bhavan. 

Sources in the Governor’s office have confirmed receiving the executive order in a sealed cover. The draft Ordinance awaits Arif Mohammed Khan’s assent so the CPI(M)-led government can replace the Governor as Chancellor of universities and appoint the Chancellors of its choice. 

When the State government expressed its intent to bring out an Ordinance, the opposition Congress and BJP criticised the government’s move and alleged the CPI government wants to convert universities in Kerala into “Communist centres”. 

When the State government was discussing the Ordinance to replace the Governor as a Chancellor of universities, Governor Arif Mohammad Khan told a new channel that he would send the Ordinance to the President. “Since the ordinance is against me I cannot judge it. So I will send it to the President,” he said. 

Kerala ministers are hopeful that the Governor would promulgate the Ordinance in accordance with the Constitution. Earlier, state’s higher education minister R Bindu had said that if Governor Khan refused to sign the Ordinance, the Pinarayi Vijayan government will ‘explore all options if such a situation arose.’

On August 11, the friction between the Governor's office and Kerala’s Left Democratic Front (LDF) government escalated further when the Governor signed nine Ordinances and refused to sign on Ordinances pertaining to Lokayukta and university appointments. 

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