Kerala Governor Arif Mohammed Khan arrived late Thursday to black flag protests by Students Federation of India activists.
The police arrested SFI workers who waved black flags as Mr. Khan’s motorcade swept by under heavy police escort. Mr. Khan, who has been at odds with the government, will host Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and the Cabinet for the swearing-in ceremony of two Minister-designates, K.B. Ganesh Kumar and Kadannappally Ramachandran, at Raj Bhavan on Friday.
Mr. Khan dismissed questions from journalists about whether the swearing-in would be an occasion for him to parley with the government.
Mr. Khan told journalists that he had asked universities to constitute search committees to select Vice-Chancellors. “Currently, it’s an ad hoc arrangement. I am well within my powers to choose Vice-Chancellors. The Supreme Court had recently upheld the Chancellor’s powers to appoint Vice-Chancellors. The government, including the Higher Education Minister, the Pro-Chancellor, has no say in the matter,” Mr. Khan said.
Police cases
When pointed out that the police had arrested the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad worker he had nominated for the Kerala University senate for attempted homicide, Mr. Khan said he was not aware of the development. He countered that the SFI State president who orchestrated the protests against him was accused in 48 police cases.
When asked why he had nominated “Sangh Parivar” loyalists to the Kerala and Calicut universities’ senates, Mr. Khan said he had named the persons based on merit, not politics. “I also nominated a few persons recommended by the media. They were well-thought and studied decisions I took based on reports from varied sources and after much deliberation,” Mr. Khan said.
‘Ambush attempts’
Mr. Khan reiterated his accusation that lawlessness and violence prevailed in the State. “Not even the head of the State is safe. They (SFI) attempted to ambush my car three times on my way to the airport from Raj Bhavan. They mobbed my vehicle and inflicted damage. The police have not booked all of them or slapped destruction of public property charges on them. The demonstrators fled when I stepped out of my vehicle to confront them. I will do the same if they (SFI) attempt to block my vehicle again,” Mr. Khan said.
When pointed out that the CPI(M) and CPI had returned the invitation to attend the consecration of the Ram temple in Ayodhya, Mr. Khan said political parties and individuals were well within their constitutional rights to make independent decisions.
