Kerala Budget Session: Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Tuesday criticised the Governor, Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar over his speech during the budget session of the state legislative assembly, saying the Governor did not read out the state cabinet-approved policy address in its entirety. This was one of the rare situations where a cabinet-approved speech created a controversy.

Governor Omitted Criticims To Centre's Policy

The chief minister alleged that Arlekar omitted portions, included sections criticising the BJP-ruled Centre's fiscal policy and references to Bills pending approval from the Raj Bhavan. The Governor did not read out the opening of paragraph 12 or the concluding portion of paragraph 15 of the document.

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"Arlekar made an insertion into paragraph 16 of the 157-paragraph, 72-page-long policy address, which read as: 'Despite these social and institutional achievements, Kerala continues to face severe fiscal stress arising from a series of adverse Union government actions that undermine the constitutional principles of fiscal federalism'," the chief minister informed the House.

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Vijayan said one of the portions avoided by the Governor was: "Bills passed by State legislatures have remained pending for prolonged periods. My Government has approached the Supreme Court on these issues, which have been referred to a Constitution Bench."

Governor Make Addition To The Speech

According to the chief minister, the Governor added his texts: "My government considers" to the second half of paragraph 16 which reads -- "Tax devolution and Finance Commission grants are constitutional entitlements of States and not acts of charity, and any pressure on constitutional bodies entrusted with this task undermines federal principles".

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Vijayan urged the Speaker that the policy address approved by the state cabinet should be acknowledged as the official version without including the omissions and additions by the Governor.

What Kerala Speaker Said On The Issue

Issuing a clarifiation on the row, Speaker AN Shamseer said omitting of or additions to the cabinet-approved address is not officially recognised as per the past precedents of the House and the same shall be applicable this time also.

(With PTI inputs)


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