Thiruvananthapuram: Opposition leader Pinarayi Vijayan has termed former governor Rajendra Arlekar’s recommendation to the President to remove the Public Service Commission (PSC) chairman and dissolve the commission unconstitutional, illegal and an abuse of power.In a statement, Vijayan said the governor had no constitutional authority to make such a recommendation. He pointed out that Article 316(2) of the Constitution provides PSC members with a six-year tenure, while Article 317 lays down the procedure for their removal.Under Article 317, allegations of misbehaviour against PSC members must be examined by the Supreme Court, and the President can decide on their removal only after receiving the court’s report, he said.Vijayan said no such inquiry had been conducted by the Supreme Court against the PSC chairman or its members. He argued that the governor, therefore, had no authority to recommend their removal and alleged that the move was a continuation of his unconstitutional interventions in the state ahead of demitting office.Citing Article 163, Vijayan said the governor was bound to act on the aid and advice of the council of ministers and could not act independently in the matter. He added that even the state cabinet could not decide to remove PSC members without following the procedure laid down under Article 317.Vijayan stressed that the PSC was a continuing institution and that successive govts had not sought to remove its chairman and members merely because of a change in government. Instead, new appointments were made as existing members completed their tenure, he said.He demanded that the state govt clarify its stand on the governor’s recommendation and asked whether the UDF govt supported what he described as unconstitutional actions by governors.Warning that such support would encourage authoritarian tendencies, Vijayan said the govt would have to pay a heavy price if it backed the recommendation, directly or indirectly.
