Published Oct 23, 2026 | 6:53 PM ⚊ Updated Oct 23, 2026 | 6:58 PM
Mathur is a former BJP general secretary in charge of Gujarat and a former Rajya Sabha member from Rajasthan.
Synopsis: Om Prakash Mathur was sworn in as Keralam’s 29th Governor at Lok Bhavan on Friday, 23 October, succeeding Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar. Chief Minister VD Satheesan and Cabinet ministers attended the ceremony, while the opposition Left Democratic Front (LDF) stayed away. Within hours of his swearing-in, Mathur sparked controversy with a reported oral directive barring the cooking of meat and fish at Lok Bhavan.
Om Prakash Mathur was sworn in as Keralam’s 29th Governor at Lok Bhavan on Friday, 23 October, with Kerala High Court Chief Justice Soumen Sen administering the oath in Hindi. Chief Minister VD Satheesan and Cabinet ministers attended the ceremony, while the opposition Left Democratic Front (LDF) stayed away.
The ceremony began and ended with Vande Mataram and the national anthem. Mathur, a former BJP general secretary in charge of Gujarat and a former Rajya Sabha member from Rajasthan, succeeds Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar, who has been appointed Governor of Tamil Nadu.
He previously served as the 18th Governor of Sikkim from July 2024 to October 2026.
Within hours of his swearing-in, Mathur sparked controversy with a reported oral directive barring the cooking of meat and fish at Lok Bhavan, the official gubernatorial residence.
Also Read: CMRL-Exalogic case: Kerala HC set to hear Pinarayi, Veena and Riyas’s appeals on Monday
AICC general secretary KC Venugopal and Keralam Deputy Chief Minister and Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala criticised the reported directive.
In a Facebook post, Venugopal said the directive disregarded Keralam’s diverse food culture and dietary traditions. He said the Governor’s personal food preferences should not be imposed on Lok Bhavan staff and called for the directive to be withdrawn.
Venugopal accused Mathur of using his constitutional position to restrict individual freedom. He also accused the Sangh Parivar of seeking to impose dietary restrictions and promote communal polarisation.
Chennithala said every citizen had the right to decide what to wear, eat and say. He said the Governor should not interfere in individual food choices.
“I may be a vegetarian, and I am also a vegetarian, but my wife is not, because I have never asked her to become one,” he told ANI. “It is a matter of individual freedom. Why should we infringe on anyone’s freedom? This is not right, and he should rectify it.”
(Edited by Dese Gowda with inputs from Sreelakshmi Soman)
