Kerala Assembly Speaker asks driver to remove footwear, courts controversy

Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala Assembly Speaker N Sakthan has got embroiled in a controversy after his driver was seen helping him wear his footwear at a function at the Assembly complex here.

The incident occurred during a function held in connection with the harvesting of paddy cultivated inside the Assembly garden yesterday in which the speaker took part.

Visuals aired by television channels this morning showed the speaker's driver, squatting on the floor and putting on the straps of Sakthan's sandals as many people looked on. State Agriculture Minister K P Mohanan had also attended the function.

The controversy has put the ruling Congress-led UDF in a spot as the LDF opposition will most likely use the incident as an opportunity to put the Front on the mat during the civic polls next month.

In a similar incident in August, Maharashtra Rural Development Minister Pankaja Munde landed in controversy after a member of her staff was seen carrying her slippers during her tour of drought-affected regions in the state.