Kalyan Singh among four governors appointed

Kerala Governor Sheila Dikshit, appointed by the previous United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government, resigned on Tuesday.

The National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government appointed governors for four states - Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Goa - on Tuesday, which coincided with Dikshit's resignation. Former UP Chief Minister Kalyan Singh was appointed Rajasthan governor, while Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders C Vidyasagar Rao, Vajubhai Vala and Mridula Sinha will be posted at Maharashtra, Karnataka and Goa, respectively.

Dikshit, who met Home Minister Rajnath Singh and President Pranab Mukherjee on Monday, told reporters on Tuesday: "I have resigned. I did it yesterday (on Monday) and don't want to comment further." Sources confirmed Dikshit had been asked to continue till September 4.

Kalyan Singh, 82, who will replace Margaret Alva, has had a turbulent political career. The former CM was sent to jail for a day by the Supreme Court on October 24, 1994, for failing to protect the Babri Masjid. Despite having left the BJP on more than one occasion, Singh has managed to make his way back to the party.

Gujarat Assembly Speaker Vajubhai Vala was a finance minister during Narendra Modi's tenure as CM. The 76-year-old leader was elected Speaker in January last year.

C Vidyasagar Rao, who was minister of state for home affairs in the Atal Behari Vajpayee government, hails from Telangana. A lawyer by profession, he was elected to the Andhra Pradesh legislative Assembly three times and was the leader of the BJP in the House.

Mridula Sinha, 71, is a former president of the BJP's Mahila Morcha.

Vinod Kumar Duggal, the governor of Manipur, has been given additional charge of Mizoram. K Sankaranarayanan, the governor of Maharashtra, had quit on Sunday after he was shifted to Mizoram.

APPOINTMENTS OF GOVERNORS

Kalyan Singh
Rajasthan
Vajubhai Rudabhai Vala
Karnataka
Chennamaneni Vidyasagar Rao
Maharashtra
Mridula Sinha
Goa