'Koshyari's exit big win for Maharashtra': Opposition hopes new governor will not be 'puppet of BJP'

The Nationalist Congress Party's Maharashtra chief, Jayant Patil, welcomed Bhagat Singh Koshyari's resignation as state governor on Sunday, February 12 and expressed hope that the new governor of the state would not be a 'puppet of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).'

President Droupadi Murmu has accepted Koshyari's resignation, said the Rashtrapati Bhavan communique issued on Sunday. Jharkhand Governor Ramesh Bais took over for Koshyari.

In response to the news, NCP leader Jayant Patil tweeted, "I hope the new governor will not be a BJP puppet like the previous one (Koshyari). We applaud the Union government's decision to replace Maharashtra's governor, a demand of the Maha Vikas Aghadi."

The previous governor degraded the stature of his position by making controversial remarks about state social icons and conducting a swearing-in ceremony for the existing unconstitutional state government. We welcome the appointment of a new Maharashtra governor, he added.

After a split in the Shiv Sena and the subsequent collapse of the Maha Vikas Aghadi government (comprising the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena, NCP, and Congress), the new Eknath Shinde-BJP coalition came to power in June last year.

Shiv Sena (UBT) MLA and former Maharashtra minister Aaditya Thackeray also welcomed Koshyari's resignation.

Big win for Maharashtra! Thackeray tweeted, saying that the anti-Maharashtra Governor's resignation had finally been accepted. He cannot be accepted as Governor as he constantly insulted Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, Mahatma Jyotiba Pule, Savitri Bai Phule, and our Constitution, Assembly, and democratic ideals.

Sena MP Sanjay Raut also reacted to Koshyari's departure. "Changing the Governor is not a favour to Maharashtra; many Governors have been changed. It's been a year since the people of Maharashtra demanded a change of Governor due to his (BS Koshiyari's) remarks on Shivaji Maharaj and Savitiribai Phule."

Some of Koshyari's statements sparked outrage, prompting the state Raj Bhavan to announce last month that he intends to resign.

In November last year, Koshyari said that Chhatrapati Shivaji was an icon of the past and that modern icons of the state are personalities such as Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar and Nitin Gadkari.

When Uddhav Thackeray was the chief minister of Maharashtra, he accused Koshyari of being overly active, pointing out that the governor had not filled 12 vacant seats in the state Legislative Council despite the state government's recommendation.

In November 2019, Koshyari swore in BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis and NCP's Ajit Pawar as chief minister and deputy chief minister in a surprise early morning swearing-in ceremony amid the BJP-Shiv Sena tussle over the CM's position.

(With inputs from PTI)

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