M A I N   N E W S

Fate of Governors hangs in balance

Clockwise from top: Governors HR Bhardwaj (Karnataka), Kamla Beniwal (Gujarat), Shivraj Patil (Punjab), and Sheila Dikshit (Kerala) may face the axe.

New Delhi, May 25
Fate of more than 10 state Governors, including Karnataka’s HR Bhardwaj and Punjab’s Shivraj V Patil, appointed by the outgoing UPA government hangs in balance with indications that the new dispensation may politely ask them to vacate the Raj Bhawans.

Officials said the Narendra Modi government, which will take charge on Monday, is unlikely to go for wholesale sacking of the Governors but there is every possibility that some of them may be politely asked to put in papers to pave way for new appointments.

“It is quite normal for a new government to ask some of the occupants of Raj Bhawans to resign as their scheme of things may not suit those holding the high constitutional posts,” an official said.

Among the Governors, Bhardwaj (Karnataka), Jagannath Pahadiya (Haryana), Devanand Konwar (Tripura) and Margaret Alva (Rajasthan) will complete their full five-year term in next three-four months.

While Bhardwaj had a strained relationship with the previous BJP government in Karnataka, Alva reportedly shares cordial relations with Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje.

Those who will complete their tenure in six to eight months are — Kamla Beniwal (Gujarat), MK Narayanan (West Bengal), JB Patnaik (Assam), Patil (Punjab) and Urmila Singh (Himachal Pradesh).

Beniwal’s spat with the Modi government in Gujarat over appointment of Lokayukta in the state is well known.

Former Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit was appointed as Kerala Governor in March this year, Jammu & Kashmir governor NN Vohra was given a second term in April 2013 and former Home Secretary VK Duggal was appointed as Governor of Manipur in December 2013.

Other Governors who may come under review of the new NDA government are BL Joshi (serving his second term in Uttar Pradesh), BV Wanchoo (Goa), K Sankaranarayanan (who is serving his second term in Maharashtra), K Rosaiah (Tamil Nadu), Ram Naresh Yadav (Madhya Pradesh), DY Patil (Bihar), Shriniwas Dadasaheb Patil (Sikkim), Aziz Quereshi (Uttarakhand), Vakkom Purushothaman (Mizoram) and Syed Ahmed (Jharkhand).

Chhattisgarh Governor Shekhar Dutta, Arunachal Pradesh’s Lt General (retd) Nirbhay Sharma, Nagaland’s Ashwani Kumar and Meghalaya’s KK Paul may also come under the scrutiny of the new government. — PTI

Winds of change?

• There are indications that the new dispensation may politely ask more than 10 Governors to vacate the Raj Bhawan
• While Karnataka Governor HR Bhardwaj had a strained relationship with the previous BJP government in Karnataka, Gujarat Governor Kamla Beniwal's spat with the state (Modi) government over appointment of Lokayukta is well known