President Pranab Mukherjee on Friday accepted the resignation of controversial Governor of Meghalaya and Arunachal Pradesh V Shanmuganathan, who had put in his papers following serious allegations over his conduct. The President handed over the charge of Arunachal Pradesh to PB Acharya, Governor of Nagaland, and that of Meghalaya to Banwarilal Purohit, at present the Governor of Assam, for the time being.
Shanmuganathan has been accused of “seriously compromising” the dignity of the gubernatorial office after a woman job aspirant had accused him of making advances when she appeared for an interview at the Raj Bhavan.
About 100 staffers of the Raj Bhavan in Shillong wrote to President Pranab Mukherjee, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh seeking their intervention to remove the 68-year-old Governor and restore the dignity of Raj Bhavan. The employees had alleged that he made it a ‘young ladies club’.
“It has become a place where young ladies come and go at will on direct orders of the Governor... Many of them have direct access to his bedroom,” employees wrote. Women activists had also launched a signature campaign seeking Shanmuganathan’s removal following reports of inappropriate behaviour by the Governor.
In a statement from Rashtrapati Bhavan, Press Secretary to the President, Venu Rajamony said the President has accepted the resignation of Shanmuganathan. “The President of India is pleased to appoint Banwarilal Purohit, Governor of Assam to discharge the functions of the Governor of Meghalaya and Padmanabha Balakrishna Acharya, Governor of Nagaland, to discharge the functions of the Governor of Arunachal Pradesh, in addition to their own duties, until regular arrangements for the offices of the Governor of Meghalaya and Arunachal Pradesh are made,” the statement said.
Shanmuganathan, a Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh pracharak, was appointed Meghalaya Governor in May 2015, and was also holding additional charge of Arunachal Pradesh.