CPI(M), Congress slam Keralam Governor’s reported veg-only kitchen directive

Keralam Governor Om Prakash Mathur’s reported directive to stop cooking meat and fish in the Lok Bhavan kitchen has triggered a political controversy, with CPI(M) Rajya Sabha MP John Brittas and Congress general secretary KC Venugopal accusing him of imposing his personal dietary preferences on others.

The order, issued before Mathur even took the oath, has drawn criticism for its implications for staff who also eat food prepared in the official kitchen. While Brittas questioned the directive as an affront to Keralam’s plural food culture, Venugopal took it further, alleging that it reflected the Sangh Parivar’s ideological agenda.

The controversy comes against the backdrop of the UDF government’s relatively non-confrontational approach towards the governor’s office under Chief Minister VD Satheesan. The government had accorded outgoing Governor Rajendra Arlekar a formal farewell, unlike the strained relationship between the previous LDF government and Arif Mohammed Khan, who left without an official send-off from the state government. Venugopal’s immediate response to Mathur’s reported directive, however, has put the issue squarely in the political arena.

‘Respect for individual choices’: Brittas

Brittas invoked a Malayalam proverb, “When the man with ear rings leaves, the man with ear studs arrives”, to describe the succession of governors in Keralam. He argued that the state’s defining characteristic was its respect for individual choices, including food, faith, and clothing.

“Kerala is a state that respects, above all, a citizen’s freedom to choose the food they like, the faith they follow, and the clothes they wear. This diversity is one of the principal factors that distinguishes Kerala from other states,” Brittas said.

Also Read: Congress MP Venugopal slams Keralam Governor over reported veg-only kitchen order

The CPI(M) MP said it was contrary to Keralam’s cultural heritage for a governor to restrict the preparation of non-vegetarian food in the official residence even before assuming office. Such a directive would be inappropriate regardless of the state in which the governor served, he said.

“Mr Om Prakash Mathur, Kerala’s culture is one in which people eat what they like. You must respect that culture. You are free to eat whatever you prefer, but insisting that everyone else should eat the food you prefer is not right,” Brittas said.

‘Efforts to impose ideological preferences’: Venugopal

Venugopal, meanwhile, linked the controversy to the broader question of individual freedoms, accusing those who had undermined citizens’ democratic rights of seeking to curtail their freedom to choose what they eat.

“Those who robbed people of their votes and struck at the foundations of their democratic rights are now preparing to take away their freedom to choose what they eat as well,” the Congress leader said.

He said the directive showed a disregard for Keralam’s social realities. The state’s food culture reflects its diversity, with fish forming an important part of the diet in its coastal regions, he said. People should be free to choose vegetarian or non-vegetarian food without restrictions imposed by others.

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“Any attempt to restrict the food habits Malayalis have followed for generations, or to prescribe what they should eat from now on, cannot be accepted,” Venugopal said.

He also argued that the governor, as a constitutional authority expected to uphold fundamental rights, could not insist that others follow his personal dietary choices. Venugopal alleged that the directive was part of the Sangh Parivar’s efforts to impose its ideological preferences, warning against attempts to regulate food habits through institutional authority.

Referring to the 2015 lynching of Mohammad Akhlaq in Dadri, Uttar Pradesh, over allegations linked to beef consumption, Venugopal said incidents of violence and hostility over food choices had left lasting scars. He warned that restrictions originating in official institutions could normalise attempts to dictate what people eat.

Early test

The episode also raises questions about how the new governor will engage with Keralam’s political establishment. Arlekar’s tenure saw disagreements with the LDF government, but Satheesan maintained a working relationship with him, despite having some issues, culminating in a formal farewell when he left Keralam. The previous LDF government’s confrontational relationship with Khan, particularly over university appointments, and his political interventions had produced a markedly different atmosphere.

Also Read: Why Dhirendra Shastri’s Durga Puja veg food remark sparked a Bengal row

Mathur’s reported kitchen directive has now provided an early test of the relationship between Lok Bhavan and the state’s political leadership. With criticism coming from both the CPI(M) and the Congress, the controversy has moved beyond a question of dietary preference to a debate over personal freedom, institutional authority, and Keralam’s tradition of cultural pluralism.

Raj Bhavan sources, however, maintained that the directive was a reflection of the governor’s personal dietary preferences, and did not amount to a ban on non-vegetarian food.