THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: In the past two-year span, Governor Arif Mohammad Khan was out of Kerala for a total of 223 days, as per documents in possession of TNIE. Most of his tours were to Uttar Pradesh, New Delhi and Maharashtra. Interestingly, he had stayed out of Kerala for 87 days within a period of six months when serious political manoeuvring was going on in the capital. It was alleged that in some months, he travelled frequently and it cost the exchequer dearly.
In 2022 alone till now he was outside of the state for 142 days. On certain occasions, the governor would fly out of state and return just for a day before embarking on another trip the next day. Usually the Comptroller and Auditor General does not audit the Rajbhavan. The ruling front alleges that it was under this disguise that the Rajbhavan is spending money prodigally. They also accuse the governor of violating the criteria set by the President’s office for travelling. According to the criteria, the governor should not keep away from the state for more than five days. But Governor Khan is not complying with the directive, critics say.
Meanwhile, Rajbhavan sources dismissed the allegations and said that according to the criteria set by the Rashtrapathi Bhavan, the governor should not stay out of the state for more than five days continuously. They also said that President’s office never sought clarification from the Rajbhavan in this regard. “They just sent the travel rules to the Rajbhavan” a source said. Rajbhavan sources claimed that the BJP government at the Centre has unofficially given nod to Arif Mohammed Khan’s travels.
There are also allegations against the Rajbhavan that the governor is distributing funds to people freely. But, dismissing the allegations, Rajbhavan sources said that the funds are distributed to people who are suffering from serious health problems. They also said that the funds are distributed only after obtaining permission from the revenue department.