President Droupadi Murmu appointed five new governors of the state including the former Union Home Secretary Ajay Kumar Bhalla as the governor of the troubled state of Manipur. The Governors of the five states were appointed by the President on 24 December 2024.

According to the Rashtrapati Bhavan communique the appointments will take effect from the dates they assume charge of their respective offices.

Ajay Kumar Bhalla Governor of Manipur

Former Union Home Secretary Ajay Kumar Bhalla has been appointed Governor of Manipur which has seen periodic ethnic clashes between the Meiteis and Kuki-Zo groups since May last year.

Ajay Kumar Bhalla will take over from Assam Governor Lakshman Prasad Acharya who was holding the additional charge of Manipur.

The 1984 Assam- Meghalaya batch (retd) IAS Ajay Kumar Bhalla is the longest-serving Home Secretary of the country Bhalla, retired in August 2024 after completing his five years tenure.

Former Army Chief General V.K Singh appointed Mizoram Governor

The 24th Army Chief (2010-2012) General (retd.) Vijay Kumar Singh was appointed as the governor of Mizoram. General (retd) V.K. Singh who joined the BJP after retirement represented the Ghaziabad Lok Sabha seat in the 2014 and 2019 general elections. He did not contest the 2024 elections. He also held a ministerial post in the Narendra Modi government.

Kerala Governor Shifter to Bihar and Bihar to Kerala

The President also appointed Arif Mohammed Khan, presently Governor of Kerala as Bihar governor. He will replace Vishwanath Arlekar who has been appointed as the new Governor of Kerala.

Odisha Governor resign & Hari Babu Kambhampati appointed as Governor

Accepting the resignation of the Odisha Governor Raghubar Das, the President appointed the Mizoram Governor Hari Babu Kambhampati as the new Governor of Odisha.

List of newly appointed Governors

Bihar -Arif Mohammed Khan
Kerala- Vishwanath Arlekar
Manipur - Ajay Kumar Bhalla
Mizoram- Retd. General Vijay Kumar Singh
Odisha - Hari Babu Kambhampati

About State Governors

Article 153 of the constitution provides for a Governor for each state in India. A person can be appointed as a Governor of two or more states.

The Governor is appointed by the President of India on the advice of the Union Council of Ministers headed by the Prime Minister.

The President has the power to transfer a Governor from one state to another.

Qualifications

The governor of a state in India should be a citizen of India and at least 35 years of age.
Shall not hold any office of profit.
Not be a member of Parliament (Lok Sabha or Rajya Sabha) or the State legislature.

Tenure of the Office

The normal term of a governor is five years, but the governor holds the office at the pleasure of the President. Thus the President can remove the Governor from office at any time.
The Governor can resign by submitting his/her resignation to the President.