Republic Day: Kerala CM, cabinet ministers boycott Governor's reception

Thiruvananthapuram (Kerala) [India], January 27 : Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and cabinet ministers have boycotted the "at home" reception organised by Governor Arif Muhammad Khan at Raj Bhavan on the occasion of Republic Day.
Principal Secretary of the General Administration Department, KR Jyothilal was the only official who attended the "at home" at Raj Bhavan on Friday evening. Chief secretary and state Director General of Police (DGP) also did not attend the programme.
This comes after Governor Khan on Thursday cut short his budget session speech in the Kerala Assembly, completing the address in just one minute, reading only the last paragraph of the text.
He said: "It is my honour to address this august body of the representatives of the people of Kerala, marking the beginning of the 10th session of the 15th Kerala Legislative Assembly. And now I will read the last paragraph."
Meanwhile, both the Chief Minister and Governor attended the Republic Day celebrations at Central Stadium on Friday morning.
While addressing the Republic Day event, the Governor said that higher education institutions should be free from outside interference.
Governor also said that as a society, "We should not allow group rivalries or internal struggles for power to affect the governance". He said cooperative federalism requires support from all stakeholders including the states of the union.