Governor denies he had precipitated a constitutional crisis

On Monday, Kerala Governor Arif Mohammad Khan rebutted the State Government’s accusation that he had precipitated a constitutional crisis by refusing to sign into law at least eight bills passed by the Legislative Assembly.

On Monday, Kerala Governor Arif Mohammad Khan rebutted the State Government’s accusation that he had precipitated a constitutional crisis by refusing to sign into law at least eight Bills passed by the Legislative Assembly.

Mr. Khan’s comment came hours before the Supreme Court was poised to hear Kerala’s plea that Mr. Khan had “defeated the rights of people, including their right to life” by withholding his assent to important Bills, including a crucial law that seeks to confront mounting post-pandemic public health concerns.

Mr. Khan told newspersons in Thiruvananthapuram that he had not created constitutional crisis as alleged by the government. “Making a statement or observation is not tantamount to inventing a crisis,” he said.

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Mr. Khan denied overstepping his constitutional limits as the head of State. “There is a long list of instances where the government has crossed the line. I do not want to comment on persons who believe in an ideology that sanctions violence and brute force to achieve their political ends”, he said.

Earlier, Mr. Khan had drawn criticism from the ruling front for stating that “liquor and lottery” were Kerala’s primary sources of revenue and “it was a shame”. Mr. Khan had also obliquely criticised the government for holding the week-long Keraleeyam festival when its treasury was purportedly bone dry.

The Governor had also attracted a sharp riposte from Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan for suggesting that the government had yet to reply to the clarifications he sought on specific laws and that a personal visit from Mr. Vijayan to Raj Bhavan to brief matters would be in order.