Ramesh Bais new Maharashtra Governor as BS Koshyari exits

Jharkhand Governor Ramesh Bais will be the new governor of Maharashtra as President Droupadi Murmu accepted the resignation of Bhagat Singh Koshyari.

Koshyari’s exit comes following a recent controversy over his comment on Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, though his term was no less acrimonious until Uddhav Thackeray was at the helm. In January, Koshyari, 81, expressed his desire to resign from the post and devote time to reading and writing.

“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 said in a statement issued earlier.

As Koshyari offered to step down, there was speculation over who will fill the crucial post in a state that went from the Maha Vikas Aghadi government to the BJP with a faction of Shiv Sena led by Eknath Shinde joining hands with the BJP. Former Punjab chief minister Amarinder Singh’s name was doing the rounds though he confirmed that those were just speculations.