The Left Democratic Front (LDF) government headed by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan finally got the assent from Governor Arif Mohammad Khan to hold a one-day special session of the Legislative Assembly on December 31 to discuss the farmer’s agitation against Centre’s three contentious farm laws and its implications for the State’s food security.
The Governor, who had earlier refused the request of the Cabinet to convene a special session on December 23, gave his nod on December 28 after the government rectified the procedural lapses in convening the session, official sources told The Hindu.
The one-day special session on December 31 is to pass a resolution against the Centre’s three contentious farm laws and drum up support for the nation-wide stir by the farmers.
The Governor has given the nod based on the request of the Cabinet that met on December 24.
For the ruling LDF and the government, the nod to convene the Assembly comes as a relief since the Governor had questioned the urgency of the special session as the Legislative Assembly was scheduled to meet from January 8. The Governor had also pointed out that the Legislative Assembly lacked “the jurisdiction to offer a solution to the strike”. The refusal of the Governor to give the nod had led to a tug of war between the Raj Bhavan and the government. The Chief Minister wrote to Mr. Khan stating the Governor had no discretionary powers in the matter and that his actions were unconstitutional.
Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister A.K. Balan and Agriculture Minister V.S. Sunil Kumar called on the Governor at the Raj Bhavan last week to convince the Governor on the urgency in convening the House. Later, Assembly Speaker P. Sreeramakrishnan also called on the Governor.
