3 governors move to new capitals

M Rama Jois, Ved Prakash Marwah and Arvind Dave took over on Thursday, June 12, as the governors of Bihar, Jharkhand and Manipur, respectively.

Former Jharkhand governor Jois was sworn in as the 27th governor of Bihar at a simple ceremony at the Patna Raj Bhavan by the most senior judge of the Patna high court, Justice Nagendra Rai, as Chief Justice Ravi S Dhawan is out of station.

Bihar Vidhan Parishad Chairman Jabir Hussain, Vidhan Sabha Speaker Sadanand Singh, Chief Minister Rabri Devi, Rashtriya Janata Dal president Laloo Prasad Yadav, Leader of the Opposition Sushil Kumar Modi, several state ministers, judges of the high court, and a host of senior officials were present at the ceremony.

Jois's predecessor Vinod Chandra Pande has been shifted to Arunachal Pradesh as governor.

Jois, who hails from Araga village in Shimoga district of Karnataka, became chief justice of the Punjab and Haryana high court in 1992, a post he held till his retirement in May that year.

After obtaining his bachelor's degree in law from Mysore University, Jois enrolled as an advocate at the Karnataka high court in 1959. He became a judge of the high court in 1977.

Jois, who has written several books on law, was awarded the Naresh Chandra Sen Gupta gold medal by the Asiatic Society of Calcutta for his outstanding contribution to society and the law in 1999. His Legal and Constitutional History of India has been described as a monumental work by eminent scholars and judges.

He was also honorary professor at the National Law School of India University, Bangalore.

In neighbouring Jharkhand, Marwah was sworn in as Jois's successor at a simple ceremony at the Ranchi Raj Bhavan.

Chief Justice of Jharkhand Balasubramaniam administered the oath of office and secrecy to Marwah, who was shifted to Jharkhand from Manipur.

Born on September 15, 1932, in Peshawar, now in Pakistan, Marwah has served as adviser to the government of Jammu and Kashmir, special secretary for internal security in the Union home ministry, director general of the National Security Guards, commissioner of police in Calcutta and Delhi, joint secretary of the National Police Commission, and first secretary of the Indian high commission in London. He was also a member of the National Security Advisory Board.

In Imphal, former Arunachal Pradesh governor Arvind Dave was sworn in as the tenth governor of Manipur, replacing Marwah.

Gauhati high court Chief Justice P P Naolekar administered the oath of office and secrecy to Dave at a simple function attended by Chief Minister Okram Ibobi Singh, his ministerial colleagues, and other high officials.