Senior BJP leader La Ganesan, who was appointed Governor of Nagaland in February 2023, passed away in Chennai.
- Nagaland Governor La Ganesan passed away in Chennai. He was 80 years old. He was undergoing treatment in a city hospital where he breathed his last.
- After this, President Droupadi Murmu appointed Manipur Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla to discharge the functions of the Governor of Nagaland in addition to his own duties.
- Senior BJP leader La Ganesan had been appointed. Earlier, he served as the Governor of Manipur and for some time also held additional charge of West Bengal.
About La Ganesan
- Unmarried Ganesan had recently celebrated his 80th birthday in Chennai in a grand manner. Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin attended this event.
- A native of Thanjavur district of Tamil Nadu, Ganesan was a deep admirer of Carnatic music and used to regularly attend the annual Tyagaraja Aradhana held at Thiruvaiyaru. His association with the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) began in his school days and his family too was deeply connected with this organization.
- In 1991 he was appointed to help in the formation of BJP in Tamil Nadu and later he resigned from the post of Joint Organizing Secretary of RSS to focus on party work. He served as General Secretary and President of the Tamil Nadu unit of BJP.
Political career
- At the national level, he held the post of BJP Vice President. He contested elections twice from the South Chennai Lok Sabha constituency, though unsuccessfully. In 2017, after then MP Najma Heptulla was appointed Governor of Manipur, Mr. Ganesan was elected to the Rajya Sabha from Madhya Pradesh.
- Mr. Ganesan was also the editor of BJP’s Tamil mouthpiece Ore Nadu (One Nation) and was the founding president of Potteramarai (‘Golden Lotus’), an organization dedicated to promoting and supporting Tamil scholars worldwide.
About State Governors
- Article 153 of the Constitution provides for a Governor for each state in India. The Governor of a state is the head of the state executive.
- Governors are appointed by the President of India on the advice of the Union Council of Ministers headed by the Prime Minister.
- The President may transfer a Governor from one state to another.
Qualifications
- Must be a citizen of India and at least 35 years of age.
- Must not hold any office of profit.
- Must not be a member of Parliament or a State Legislature.
- (A member of Parliament or State Legislature can become a Governor, but before taking oath as Governor, he has to resign from Parliament or State Legislature.)
- There is no restriction on how many times a person can become Governor of a state.
Tenure of Governor
- The normal tenure of a Governor is five years, but the Governor holds office during the pleasure of the President.
- This means that the President can remove him at any time.
- The Governor can resign from his post by submitting his resignation in writing to the President.
Salary and allowances
- Parliament determines the emoluments, allowances and privileges of the Governor and these cannot be reduced during his tenure.
- The present salary of the Governor is ₹3.5 lakh per month and it is mentioned in the Second Schedule of the Constitution. The salary is paid by the state government.
- If a person is Governor of more than one state, his salary is divided among the states according to the formula decided by the President.
- The Governor gets rent-free official residence.
- The Governor is not entitled to any pension.
