Aizawl: West Bengal and Bihar Governor K.N. Tripathi, who has been given additional charge of Mizoram, was sworn in as the 16th governor of the northeastern state here on Saturday.
Justice Michael Zothankhuma of the Gauhati High Court administered the oath of office to Tripathi, 80, at the Durbar Hall of the Raj Bhavan here.
Chief Minister Lal Thanhawla, his cabinet colleagues, assembly Speaker Hiphei, parliamentary secretaries, legislators, leaders of various political parties and top security and civil officials were present at the swearing-in ceremony.
Chief Secretary Lalmalsawma conducted the programme.
Earlier in the day, on his arrival from Kolkata, Tripathi was received at the Lengpui airport by Lal Thanhawla, Home Minister R. Lalzirliana and top officials including the chief secretary and state police chief.
Tripathi replaces Aziz Qureshi, who was sacked last week. His term would have ended in 2017.
Tripathi practised as a lawyer in the Allahabad High Court from 1956 till 2014 except for the three times when he was speaker of the Uttar Pradesh assembly — in 1991, 1997 and 2002.
Congress-ruled Mizoram has the dubious distinction of having seen seven governors in eight months.
President Pranab Mukherjee had transferred Qureshi, who had filed a petition in the Supreme Court over the Bharatiya Janata Party-led central government’s pressure on him to relinquish his post, to Mizoram on December 30 last year from Uttarakhand.
Qureshi’s case was referred to a five-judge constitutional bench as it involves a substantive question of constitutional law relating to removal of governors. The bench is yet to be formed.
Politicians, civil society groups, youth and students’ unions have criticised the central government for frequent transfers of the governors in Mizoram.
The Mizo Zirlai Pawl (MZP), an apex body of students’ organisations, Saturday staged a protest in front of the Raj Bhavan and raised slogans accusing the central government of using Mizoram as the “gubernatorial dumping ground”.
It also said it will hold protests at central government offices here on Tuesday as well as during President Pranab Mukherjee’s visit on April 9-10.