In the latest reshuffle of governors, the President of India accepted the resignation of Raghubar Das as governor of Odisha and announced the appointments of new governors across several states on Tuesday.
In a significant move, Bihar Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar has been appointed the new governor of Kerala. Arif Mohammed Khan, who served as the governor of Kerala, has been moved to Bihar.
The other changes include the appointment of former home secretary Ajay Kumar Bhalla as the governor of Manipur and former Army chief and Union minister Vijay Kumar Singh as the governor of Mizoram.
Hari Babu Kambhampati, who served as the governor of Mizoram, is now in charge of Odisha.
Who is Ajay Kumar Bhalla?
Ajay Kumar Bhalla, who hails from Jalandhar, served as the home secretary of India for around five years from 2019 to 2024. Bhalla's appointment in Manipur assumes significance as the state has been witnessing ethnic clashes between the Kuki and Meitei communities for over a year. Bhalla will replace Anusuiya Uikey.
As the home secretary, Bhalla oversaw the implementation of the changes following the abrogation of Jammu and Kashmir's special status in 2019, managed the government's response amid protests against CAA and spearheaded the country's fight during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Who is Rajendra Arlekar?
Arlekar had earlier served as the governor of Himachal Pradesh. He was a cabinet minister in Goa and a former speaker of the Goa Legislative Assembly. Arlekar joined the Bharatiya Janata Party in 1989.
The swapping of governors in Kerala and Bihar, too, comes amid the power tussle between the Pinarayi Vijayan government and the Raj Bhavan.
