Kummanam Rajasekharan, who was the Bharatiya Janata Party’s Kerala unit chief for three years, was on Tuesday sworn in as the 18th Governor of Mizoram. He replaced Lt. Gen. (retired) Nirbhay Sharma who completed his term on Monday after taking charge in May 2015.
A barrage of protests had preceded the anointment of Mr. Rajasekharan, a former Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh pracharak and head of the allegedly radical Hindu Aikyavedi based in Kerala.
At least two organisations in the northeastern State — Global Council of Indian Christians (GCIC) and People’s Representation for Identity and Status of Mizoram (PRISM) — had opposed Mr. Rajasekharan’s appointment by President Ram Nath Kovind last Friday.
A statement issued by PRISM said Mr. Rajasekharan was not suitable for the Governor’s post as he is an “active member of the RSS and was involved with the Vishwa Hindu Parishad.” PRISM was an anti-corruption group before turning into a political party.
The party argued that posting a “political person” with an RSS background in State capital Aizawal’s Raj Bhavan could impact politics in Mizoram.
Assembly elections in Mizoram are scheduled to be held by December this year. The BJP had in April registered its first electoral victory of any kind in the State to rule the Chakma Autonomous District Council with support from the unlikeliest of parties — Congress.
The GCIC too had opposed Mr. Rajasekharan’s appointment and had sought a “fair-minded person” as replacement of a retired Army officer. “Christians in Mizoram in particular and those of the country in general feel disturbed and very much let down after the appointment of a hardcore Hindutva fundamentalist as the new Governor of Mizoram where 87% of people are Christians,” a functionary of the council said.
The council accused the BJP’s central leadership of a ploy to “create disharmony in the State by appointing a person who has a questionable track record.”
