Kerala Governor Rajendra Viswanath Arlekar called on former state chief minister V S Achuthanandan at his residence in Thiruvananthapuram on Thursday and inquired about his health from his family members.
Speaking to the media after visiting the veteran Communist leader, the governor said he had heard about him since his college days and that he was the one who led an exemplary public life. “As I happen to be the Governor here, I thought I must meet him and his family. Although V S could not speak due to ill health, I was able to communicate with him. I pray for his good health,” he said.
The governor further said that his meeting with Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and his wife was very cordial. The couple had the other day visited the governor at the Raj Bhavan
On a query by the media persons regarding the draft University Grants Commission(UGC) Regulations of 2025 , Governor Arlekar said all the views about the UGC draft guidelines should go to the proper platforms and they will discuss it.
Downplaying the Kerala government’s criticism and opposition to the draft UGC guidelines, Arlekar said everyone’s views would be considered before a final version is released. “It is still a draft, not the final version. So, considering everybody’s different views, they will come out with the final document,” he said.
India being a democracy “everybody has the right to say anything over anything in this country and there was nothing wrong with it”, the governor added.
Meanwhile, in an article in the CPI-M mouthpiece, Deshabhimani, published on Thursday, party’s state secretary M V Govindan praised Governor Arlekar. The article said it was welcome that the governor was not prepared to refrain from performing his constitutional duty despite criticism from the Central government.
Unlike the previous governor, Arif Mohammed Khan, the new governor was prepared to read the state government’s policy speech in full, and that he expects a similar approach from the Governor in the coming days as well, Govindan said in the article.