New Delhi [India], June 6 : Communist Party of India (CPI) MP P Sandosh Kumar on Friday urged President Droupadi Murmu to recall Kerala Governor Rajendra Arlekar, accusing him of "unconstitutional conduct" over the display of a perticular version of the Bharat Mata image without consulting the state government.
In a letter addressed to the President, Kumar expressed grave concern over the Governor's unilateral decision to display a particular version of the Bharat Mata image during the Environment Day event at the Raj Bhavan in Kerala without any consultation with the elected state government.
"This imposition compelled the State Agriculture Minister P. Prasad to boycott the function, exposing yet again the partisan role being played by Governors in non-BJP ruled states," Kumar said.
"This is not an isolated case. Governors in several states are increasingly behaving like political agents of the BJP-RSS, openly defying the constitutional framework that demands neutrality, restraint, and respect for elected governments," said Shri P. Sandosh Kumar. He added that the symbolic manipulation of Bharat Mata-a historically secular and anti-colonial figure- into a sectarian and ideological emblem is a dangerous distortion that cannot be accepted in state functions or constitutional offices.
"They also potentially contravene the Emblems and Names (Prevention of Improper Use) Act, 1950, and the Prevention of Insults to National Honour Act, 1971, by misusing national symbols for political or sectarian purposes. The Bharat Mata image, originally envisioned by Abanindranath Tagore during the Swadeshi Movement as a unifying emblem of anti-colonial resistance, has in recent years been altered and weaponised by an organisation notorious for its divisive politics," Sandosh Kumar said.
"At a time when cooperative federalism should be the guiding principle of Centre-State relations, such provocations by Governors erode public trust and tarnish the office they occupy," he said.
He concluded by calling for urgent intervention from the President.
"I urge you to take serious note of this trend and take immediate steps to ensure that Governors do not overstep their constitutional mandate. The Governor of Kerala Rajendra Arlekar, by acting in an openly partisan and unconstitutional manner, has diminished the dignity of the office and should be recalled. The Raj Bhavans must remain neutral, constitutional spaces--not ideological shakhas. I hope this matter will find your much necessary intervention," Kumar said.