President Droupadi Murmu has accepted Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari’s resignation, President’s Secretariat said on Sunday (February 12, 2023). An official statement said that Jharkhand Governor Ramesh Bais has been appointed as the new Maharashtra Governor.
Koshyari had been in the line of Opposition fire over his remarks on Chhatrapati Shivaji.
Earlier last month, he had expressed his desire before Prime Minister Narendra Modi to quit the post and said he would like to spend the remainder of his life in reading, writing, and other activities.
“During the recent visit of the Hon’ble Prime Minister to Mumbai, I have conveyed to him my desire to be discharged of all political responsibilities and to spend the remainder of my life in reading, writing and other activities.
“I have always received the love and affection from the Hon’ble Prime Minister and I hope to receive the same in this regard,” a statement from the Raj Bhavan said.
“It was an absolute honour and privilege for me to serve as the Rajya Sevak or Rajyapal of a great State like Maharashtra, the land of Saints, Social reformers and valiant fighters,” Koshyari added.
Bhagat Singh Koshyari took charge as Maharashtra governor in 2019
The 81-year-old took charge as the Maharashtra governor in September 2019.
When the Uddhav Thakeray-led Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) was in power, he had several run-ins with the government on a range of issues including the appointment of 12 members to the state legislative council from the gubernatorial quota, which he never approved. The MVA had accused him of acting in a partisan manner.
The latest controversy surrounding Koshyari was about his remarks on Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj whom he described as the “icon of olden times”.
His remarks had triggered protests from the Opposition parties demanding that he be sacked.
