KOCHI: The controversy over whether the government engineered a veto of Kerala Governor Arif Mohammed Khan's proposal to confer honorary DLitt on President Ram Nath Kovind refused to die down with Khan on Sunday saying the office of the Governor and President should not be discussed “in a light manner.”
Khan, who neither confirmed nor denied whether he had made such a recommendation to the Kerala University vice-chancellor, told reporters in Kochi that he could not react to ignorant statements (on the matter). His words drew rebuke from Opposition Leader VD Satheesan, who said the governor’s office was not above criticism.
Khan, who was in Kochi to welcome Vice-President Venkaiah Naidu - who is on a three-day visit to the city - said, "As far as making any recommendation (on DLitt to the President) is concerned, I'm the chancellor. It's up to the university or the chancellor to comment on it. I can't react to ignorant statements. The Constitution makes it binding on us to respect national symbols and national institutions. The President and Governor are considered national institutions. Please exercise some discretion. Don’t make the offices a subject of discussion in a light manner."
However, Satheesan said the governor was not above criticism. "I'm not saying the President should not be conferred with DLitt. I'm saying if the governor made such a recommendation, it should have been done through a proper proposal to the VC. The syndicate would have been forced to take up the matter. Conferring DLitt on the President is not something that should have been told to the VC in private," he said.
BJP state president K Surendran attacked Satheesan saying the Opposition leader was behaving like a member of the Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan’s cabinet. "There is an unholy nexus between the state government and the principal Opposition. The CM and the Opposition leader are targeting the governor," he said.
Governor should clarify: CPM state secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: CPM state secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan said it is the prerogative of the Kerala University to decide whom it should confer DLitt on. He said that the varsity has not conferred the rare academic title on any president.
"The Congress is the one saying the governor made the recommendation. It is up to him to clarify whether he proposed it and if the present issue is a result of the varsity not listening to him," he said.