New Delhi: After reportedly barring journalists of news channels from attending a press conference on October 24, Kerala governor Arif Mohammad Khan has posted on Twitter denying the allegations.Following a press conference by Kerala chief minister Pinrayi Vijayan, some reporters had approached Khan with their questions, but he had reportedly brushed them aside.“I can only tell you, please whosoever wants to talk to me, they can send a request to Raj Bhavan, I will make it sure that I talk to you. But I don’t know who among you is a genuine journalist and who are the cadre masquerading as media. And I do not wish to speak to the cadre,” news agency PTI had quoted the governor as saying.Further, the news agency reported that when Khan called a press conference later on Monday, news channels including Kairali, Reporter, Media One and Jaihind were not allowed to cover it.However, on Tuesday evening, Khan tweeted saying that Raj Bhavan had not barred any channel from covering the conference, and claimed that mediapersons who had requested interviews with him had been called at a common time, which was then reported as being a press conference.#KeralaRajBhavan had not “barred any channel from Press Meet” as some reports allege.Mediapersons who requested for interview on 24 Oct were invited at a common time, due to paucity of time. This interaction was misunderstood by some as “Press conference”:PRO, KeralaRajBhavan— Kerala Governor (@KeralaGovernor) October 25, 2022Opposition leaders as well as the Kerala Union of Working Journalists (KUWJ) had marked their objection to the governor’s move, decrying it as an assault on free speech and the freedom of the press and the abnegation of a constitutional responsibility. This incident came even as Khan and the Vijayan-led state government have locked horns on the issue of appointments of V-Cs of universities in the state.Also read: ‘Waging War to Destroy State Universities’: Kerala CM Slams Governor Over VCs’ Resignation RowKhan, who is the de facto chancellor of all universities in the state, had on October 23 asked the vice-chancellors (VC) of nine universities to tender their resignations. After heavy criticism of the move from chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan, the Kerala high court on Monday heard a plea by eight of the nine V-Cs and ruled that they could continue at their posts, saying that the communication sent by the governor was not proper.Despite the high court’s ruling, on Tuesday, Khan issued fresh show cause notices to two university V-Cs, alleging that their appointments were in contravention of University Grants Commission (UGC) guidelines and asking them to demonstrate what legal right they hold to continue at their positions.Notice issued to VCs of Sreenarayanaguru Open University & Kerala Univ. of Digital Sciences,Innovation&Technology to show cause,by 5pm on/before 04.11.2022 ,their legal right to hold Office of VC & not to declare their appointment’illegal & void ab initio’:PRO, KeralaRajBhavan pic.twitter.com/gzkamJCd3J— Kerala Governor (@KeralaGovernor) October 25, 2022