Governor tenure ends today

Shillong, June 29: The tenure of former IPS officer Ranjit Shekhar Mooshahary as Meghalaya governor will end tomorrow.

Mooshahary, who assumed office on July 1, 2008, during the then Meghalaya Progressive Alliance (MPA) government under Donkupar Roy, was the first governor from an indigenous community of this predominantly tribal state, and the only non-politician ever from the Northeast to hold the constitutional office.

Sources in the Raj Bhavan today said no communication had been received from New Delhi in relation to Mooshahary’s tenure — whether the former IPS officer would be given a fresh term of five years or a new person would be appointed in his place.

He will, however, continue to hold office till a communiqué arrives from Rashtrapati Bhavan, the sources said.

According to the Constitution in relation to the removal of a person from the gubernatorial post, the governor shall hold office till the President decides otherwise, she/he shall hold office for five years; she/he may, by writing to the President, resign from office and she/he shall, notwithstanding expiration of the term, continue to hold office till a successor takes over.

A former chief of the National Security Guards (NSG) and the BSF, Mooshahary had recently made headlines by bringing out various alleged irregularities against the functioning of CMJ University, a private institution, where he is a visitor.

He had also suggested to the state government that the university, brought into being through a state legislation, should be dissolved.