Kerala Governor Arif Mohammad Khan seeks ouster of Finance Minister Balagopal; CM Pinarayi Vijayan refuses
The Hindu
Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan reportedly rejected the demand and reasserted his constitutional right to drop or appoint Ministers. In a communique to Raj Bhavan, Mr. Vijayan reportedly asserted that the CM's advice bound the Governor.
Kerala Governor Arif Mohammad Khan pushed the Left Democratic Front (LDF) government into a legal- and political crisis by withdrawing his pleasure visa-a-vis the continuation of Finance Minister K. N. Balagopal in office.
In a quick-fire riposte, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan reportedly rejected the demand and reasserted his constitutional right to drop or appoint Ministers. In a communique to Raj Bhavan, Mr. Vijayan reportedly asserted that the CM's advice bound the Governor.
The government believed that the "pleasure of the Governor" was restrained by the Chief Minister's advice as per the Constitution.
Hence, Mr. Khan lacked the constitutional authority to withdraw his pleasure without the Chief Minister's consent in relation to the continuation of a Minister or the Cabinet in the office.
In a strongly worded letter to Mr. Vijayan, Mr. Khan took strong exception to Mr. Balagopal's reported statement that people who were accustomed to practices in places such as Uttar Pradesh would not understand the democratic nature in which universities in Kerala function.
Mr. Khan said Mr. Balagopal had made the indirect comment at a Kerala University's Karyavattom campus function.
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