Hyderabad: Central government sources have indicated that Telangana state Governor E.S.L Narasimhan might be on his way out soon and will be offered the post of Lieutenant Governor in Srinagar.
The Centre has not yet officially consulted Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao as per convention.
Both national and state capital scuttlebutt has it that the Centre has decided to see off Mr Narasim-han, one of the longest-serving Governors, and perceived to be close to Mr Rao, at a time when the BJP is looking to grow aggressively in the state.
After the revocation of clauses within Article 370 with regard to Jammu and Kashmir, and its bifurcation into two Union Terri-tories, the Centre will have to appoint either two Lieutenant Governors for the two UTs, or a single Lt. Governor who can manage both. It is likely that the Centre will name two Lt. Governors, given the importance of coordination with the Centre in managing the fallout of Monday’s move.
Mr Narasimhan was appointed Governor of Chhattisgarh on January 25, 2007, after demitting office as director, Intelli-gence Bureau, and was made Governor of undivided AP in January 2010. The post of Lt Governor would be a demotion for him, but if he refuses he may not be offered another choice.
Narasimhan assumed charge as Governor of Telangana state on June 2, 2014, and served in the post for both bifurcated states.
With his rich experience as an IPS officer from 1968, he was politically deft in his handling of the complex bifurcation issues. Sources say that he is at the top of the list for the Kashmir posting.
Sources are tight-lipped about his likely replacement, but Mr Satya Pal Malik, Governor of J&K since August 21, 2018, who has earlier served in the Raj Bhavans of Bihar and Odisha, is the most likely replacement.
