On January 20, 2026, the Kerala Legislative Assembly witnessed a rare and tense political dispute immediately after Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar delivered his policy address at the start of the Budget session. The disagreement began when Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan objected to parts of the speech that the Governor read out to the House, saying that it did not match the policy address approved by the state cabinet beforehand.

According to Vijayan, the Governor did not read the full cabinet-approved speech. He told the Assembly that certain parts cleared by the state government were skipped, and some changes were made in the version that Arlekar delivered.

The Chief Minister said the Governor did not read the opening line of paragraph 12 and the concluding part of paragraph 15 of the document prepared by the state cabinet. These lines were critical of fiscal matters and pointed to actions by the BJP-led Union government.

One of the sections omitted by the Governor related to Kerala facing “severe fiscal stress” due to the adverse actions of the Union government, which, according to the text, undermined the constitutional principles of fiscal federalism. Another missing portion referred to Bills passed by the Kerala Assembly that remained pending for long durations, and noted that the government had approached the Supreme Court, where the matter was before a Constitution Bench.

The exact wording of the first omitted section was, “Despite these social and institutional achievements, Kerala continues to face severe fiscal stress arising from a series of adverse Union Government actions that undermine the constitutional principles of fiscal federalism.”

The second omitted sentence read, “Bills passed by state legislatures have remained pending for prolonged periods. My government has approached the Supreme Court on these issues, which have been referred to a Constitution Bench.”

Vijayan also pointed out that the Governor made an addition to paragraph 16 of the policy address. He said Arlekar inserted the words “my government considers” into a sentence that originally stated that tax devolution and Finance Commission grants are constitutional entitlements of states and not acts of charity, and that any pressure on constitutional bodies entrusted with this task undermines federal principles.

After explaining these differences, the Chief Minister urged Speaker A. N. Shamseer to recognise only the version of the policy address approved by the state cabinet as the official document. Vijayan said this was necessary because the Governor’s changes were neither authorised nor in line with the address agreed upon by the elected government.

Speaker Shamseer agreed with the Chief Minister’s position. He said that past precedents of the House do not recognise any changes made to a cabinet-approved address. Therefore, he supported Vijayan’s request that only the original cabinet-approved speech should be considered the official policy address for the record.

The dispute in Kerala occurred on the same day as another similar confrontation in Tamil Nadu, where Governor R. N. Ravi refused to read out the state government-prepared address and walked out of the Assembly. In that case, Governor Ravi later said he was disappointed by what he described as the lack of respect for the national anthem, and also claimed to have faced technical issues, his microphone being switched off during the proceedings.

The incident in the Kerala assembly highlights the ongoing tension between the state government and the constitutional office of the Governor, especially when it comes to how policy speeches are presented in the legislative assembly. The disagreement also underscored deeper political and constitutional debates over fiscal federalism, state autonomy, and the role of Governors in assemblies.