Kerela Congress president Sudheeran opposes Sathasivam as new governor

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The BJP-led NDA government's move to appoint former chief justice of India P Sathasivam as governor of Kerala has come under fire from KPCC president VM Sudheeran.

"Constitutional experts should analyze whether it is proper to appoint a former chief justice of India as the governor of a state. There should be more discussions on this," Sudheeran said. The CJI provides the oath of office for the President of India, so how can such a person be appointed under the President, Sudheeran asked.

Sathasivam's appointment is also being criticized because he hails from Tamil Nadu, a fallout of prejudices resulting from recent judgments against Kerala on the Mullaperiyar dam issue.

State BJP leaders too are unhappy. In the ongoing state committee meeting, several leaders demanded that the party's central leadership should have consulted state leaders before appointing a governor of the party's choice.

Sathasivam served as CJI between August 2013 and April this year. Interestingly, the All India Bar Association had in July opposed a gubernatorial appointment for Sathasivam for allegedly providing relief to BJP chief Amit Shah in an encounter case.