Kerala Assembly: Kerala Governor Arif Mohammed Khan took an unprecedented step on Thursday, signaling his discontent with the ruling Left front in the state, by quickly concluding the government’s customary policy address in the Assembly by reading only its last paragraph.
Khan, who reached the Assembly at around 9 am, concluded the policy address before 9.02 am and left the House by 9.04 am.
Upon his arrival, Speaker A N Shamseer, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, and Parliamentary Affairs Minister K Radhakrishnan greeted him outside the House with bouquets.
Kerala Governor reads last para
Khan began the customary policy address by greeting everyone in the House and then said, “It is my honour to address this august body of the representatives of the people of Kerala, marking the beginning of the 10th session of the 15th Kerala Legislative Assembly. And now will read the last paragraph.”
Reading out the last of the 136 paragraphs of the 62-page policy address, the Governor said, “Let us remember that our greatest legacy lies not in buildings or monuments, but in the respect and regard we show to the priceless legacy of the Constitution of India and the timeless values of democracy, secularism, federalism and social justice.”
“The essence of cooperative federalism is what has kept our country united and strong all these years. It is our bounden duty to ensure that this essence is not diluted. Together as part of this varied and beautiful nation, we will weave the tapestry of inclusive growth and responsible resilience, overcoming all the challenges that are thrown our way,” he said, concluding his address, and sat down in the seat marked for him on the dais.
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After the national anthem was played and concluded, Khan exited the Assembly, completing the entire process in just under 5 minutes.
Khan and the Left government have been in conflict over various matters, particularly concerning the operations of universities in the state and his refusal to sign certain bills approved by the Assembly.
This disagreement led to widespread protests against him across the state by the CPI(M), its youth wing the Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI), and its student organization the Students Federation of India (SFI).
(With agencies input)
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