The launch of ‘Vajra Keralam,’ the year-long celebrations to mark the 60th anniversary of the formation of the State, courted a controversy with the organisers failing to include Governor P. Sathasivam and former Chief Ministers in the function held at the Assembly complex on Tuesday.
The Governor and former Chief Ministers A. K. Antony, V. S. Achuthanandan and Oommen Chandy were in the capital when the celebrations were launched. Mr. Antony, who flew down from New Delhi was in the city. Mr. Chandy and Mr. Achuthanandan who attended the special session of the Assembly left the premises without attending the function. The Governor left for Chennai at 11.25 a.m. for attending official and family functions. Official sources said Mr. Sathasivam was not invited for the function organised jointly by the government and the Assembly despite the Governor being the head of the State.
“It is due to protocol restrictions that the Governor was not invited,” the Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said in the beginning of the inaugural address. It was decided by the Leader of the Opposition and legislature party leaders, he said adding it would have been difficult to accommodate 60 on the dais if the Governor was invited. He said the Governor will be invited for some important function or valedictory function.
Invited over phone: Antony
Interacting with the media later in the day, Mr. Antony said he was invited for the function. “I decided not to go after seeing the invitation letter,” he added. It is learnt that the Chief Minister personally invited Mr. Antony over telephone for the function. Mr. Antony flew down for attending the function and did not have other engagements.
KPCC president and former Assembly Speaker V. M. Sudheeran said he skipped the function as Mr. Antony and Mr. Chandy were not given the importance and respect by the organisers. Mr. Achuthanandan’s name was also missing from the invitation, the KPCC president said in a statement.
