Former Union Minister Arif Mohammed Khan. (Express File Photo: Amit Mehra)Former Union minister Kalraj Mishra, former Uttarakhand chief minister Bhagat Singh Koshyari, BJP’s Tamil Nadu unit chief Tamilisai Soundararajan and former Union labour minister Bandaru Dattatraya were on Sunday named Governors, continuing with the practice of BJP veterans being picked for gubernatorial posts. However, the surprise appointment was that of former Congress leader Arif Mohammed Khan, who famously resigned from the Rajiv Gandhi government in 1986 over its stand in the Shah Bano case. Khan, a vocal supporter of the abolition of instant triple talaq by the BJP-led NDA government, has been appointed the new Governor of Kerala, replacing former Chief Justice of India P Sathasivam.
The appointment of Khan, 68, as Governor of Kerala assumes significance since it’s a state where the BJP is desperate to make electoral inroads. The party failed to win a single seat in Kerala in the 2019 election, in which the BJP came back to power at the Centre with a stronger majority.
His appointment comes in the backdrop of the BJP pushing through the triple talaq Bill in Parliament recently. A supporter of reforms in Islam, Khan has opposed instant triple talaq for years and accused the Congress of alleged appeasement of minorities. After quitting the Congress, Khan joined the Janata Dal and BSP. In 2004, he joined the BJP but left three years later, saying he felt ignored in the party.
According to BJP sources, Khan’s appointment as Governor would be a “good highlight” for the BJP government’s “sabka saath sabka vikas, sabka vishwas” slogan and could counter the criticism of it being “anti-Muslim”.
Among the other appointments, former Uttarakhand CM Koshyari, 77, has been named Governor of Maharashtra, while Soundararajan, 58, moves to the Raj Bhavan in Telangana, according to a Rashtrapati Bhavan communique.
Former Union minister Kalraj Mishra, who was recently appointed Governor of Himachal Pradesh, has been shifted to Rajasthan. Mishra, 78, will succeed former Uttar Pradesh chief minister Kalyan Singh, who has completed his five-year tenure as Rajasthan Governor. Former Union minister Bandaru Dattatreya, 72, replaces Mishra in Himachal Pradesh.
Kalyan Singh, an accused in the Babri Masjid case, not getting an extension would mean that he stands to lose the immunity under Article 361 of the Constitution that he had been enjoying as Governor. Singh, under whose tenure as chief minister of Uttar Pradesh the Babri Masjid was razed, will now have to face the charges. The Supreme Court in its 2017 order had directed the special court in Lucknow to “frame charges against him as soon as he ceases to be Governor”.
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Koshyari replaces Vidya Sagar Rao as Maharashtra Governor, while Soundararajan will succeed ESL Narasimhan as Telangana Governor.
Soundararajan’s appointment has taken many by surprise. She is only 58 years and has been the face of the party in a state where the BJP hopes to expand its footprints. Party leaders said the BJP would focus on developing another rung of leadership in the state ahead of the 2021 assembly polls.
“The appointments will take effect from the dates they assume charge of their respective offices,” the Rashtrapati Bhavan communique said.
