State gets its 13th Governor, first career politician

Samaan Lateef

Tribune News Service

Srinagar August 22

Governor-designate Satya Pal Malik will take oath as 13th Governor of the troubled Jammu and Kashmir on Thursday.

Malik, who hails from Meerut in Uttar Pradesh, was the Governor of Bihar before being posted to J&K by President Ram Nath Kovind on Tuesday. Malik’s new appointment will take effect from the date he assumes charge. Malik will replace NN Vohra, who is the only J&K Governor who completed two consecutive terms between 2008-2018. J&K came under Governor’s rule on June 19 after the PDP-BJP coalition government collapsed. Malik will be the first Governor in the state’s history who has been a career politician.

Soon after J&K acceded to India in 1947, Karan Singh, son of Maharaja Hari Singh, was appointed as the sadr-i-riyasat of the state. Karan Singh also served as the first Governor of the state after the post was created in 1965 through a constitutional amendment. He held the position from March 30, 1965 to May 15, 1967. He joined the Congress in 1967 after he quit the governorship.

He was replaced JN Wazir, who served from March 15, 1967 to May 15, 1967. Wazir was replaced by Bhagwan Sahai on May 15, 1967, and he continued in the office till July 3, 1973.

LK Jha became the fourth Governor of the state. He assumed office on July 3, 1973, and continued till February 26, 1981. Jha had worked at key positions, including Secretary to Prime Ministers Lal Bahadur Shastri and Indira Gandhi. Jha was replaced by well-known economist and diplomat Brij Kumar Nehru on February 26, 1982. He held the position up to April 26, 1984.

For 12 days Justice V Khalid was appointed as the acting Governor after Nehru. He was replaced Jagmohan in May 1984 up to July 1989. Jagmohan had a controversial second term from Jan 19, 1990, to May 26,1990, when militancy erupted in Kashmir and Pandits migrated from the Valley.

He was replaced by General KV Krishna Rao, former Chief of Army Staff. He served for the first time from July 11, 1989, to January 19, 1990, and the second time from March 13, 1993, till May 2, 1998.

Girish Chandra Saxena took over as the head of the state on May 2, 1998, for the second time. Saxena was replaced by Lt Gen (retd) Srinivas Kumar Sinha. On June 4, 2003, General Sinha was sworn in the 11th Governor and remained till June 25, 2008. He passed away on 17th November, 2016 He was followed by 1959 IAS batch officer NN Vohra.