The spat between the Kerala Governor and the Chief Minister is most unfortunate

Yatha Raja, Tatho Praja (As the ruler, so his subjects) is an age-old saying. If the rulers are honest, the ruled too would be of the same genre, as per this adage. The rulers are the ones who set the benchmark of quality and standard in normal life. The stand-off featuring Kerala Governor Arif Mohammed Khan and Chief Minister PinarayiVijayan was a blot not only on democracy but on the entire political discourse. What started as a wordy duel soon degenerated into name-calling and using the choicest of abuses by certain CPI (M) leaders known for their contempt for civility.Arif Mohammed Khan should have used his reign in Thiruvananthapuram Raj Bhavan to learn that the Marxists are blunt and hubristic towards persons who do not agree with their line of thinking. Whenever they are in power, it is customary for the CPI (M) to appoint party fellow comrades and cadres as vice-chancellors, faculty members, and administrative staff in universities even if they do not meet the mandatory qualifications. The Marxists in Kerala are known for their uncompromising stance that the 'Boss can never be wrong. Being a scholarly person as claimed by BJP leaders, the Governor should have read George Orwell's Animal Farm before landing in Thiruvananthapuram.

The issue before the Governor is that certain legislations enacted by the Assembly to strengthen the CPI (M)-led Government with the power to appoint people of their choice in all Government departments and to do away with the authority of Lok Pal, the official whistleblower. Arif Mohammed Khan could have signed the Bills or sent the same for the opinion of constitutional experts. There was no need for the Governor to interact with the Kerala media which the Raj Bhavan itself has pronounced as 'hostile' and 'partial'. The Chief Minister, while rebuking the Governor for speaking in a language that does not suit the position being held by the latter, should have asked his comrades too to not cross the LakshmanRekha. One of the party commissars was sentenced to a jail term for calling High Court judges 'illiterates' and 'imbeciles'. A good Governor should have taken a cue from Queen Elizabeth, the former monarch of Great Britain who, having worked with more than two dozen Prime Ministers, left a mark of elegance and aristocracy on her tenure. Despite facing myriad personal and official issues, the Queen remained a cool customer and a role model for other heads of State. Khan should have emulated the Queen.