Mishra takes oath as second L-G of Ladakh

Brigadier (Retd) BD Mishra was on Sunday sworn-in as the second Lieutenant Governor of Ladakh, replacing former IAS officer Radha Krishna Mathur who held the gubernatorial post for over 27 months after the region officially became a Union Territory in 2019.

The President of India appointed the 83-year-old Mishra as the L-G of Ladakh after accepting the resignation of Mathur on February 12. Mishra, a former governor of Arunachal Pradesh, was administered oath by the Chief Justice of the High Court of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, Justice N Kotishwar Singh, at a function organised at the Raj Niwas in Leh.

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Advisor Umang Narula read out the warrant of appointment of Mishra as the L-G of Ladakh, officials said. The event was attended by Ladakh MP Jamyang Tsering Namgyal, chief executive councillors of Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development councils, Tashi Gyalson (Leh) and Feroz Khan (Kargil), all administrative secretaries and other dignitaries including senior officers of police, Army and paramilitary forces. Later, Mishra was accorded the guard of honour by the Ladakh police.

After an illustrious career spanning more than 33 years, Mishra retired from the Army on July 31, 1995 and took over as the governor of Arunachal Pradesh on October 3, 2017.

He was the commander of the NSG counter hijack task force and received the Prime Minister’s appreciation for his role in ending the hijack crisis at the Raja Sansi Airfield in Amritsar on April 24, 1993 by eliminating the hijackers and safely rescuing all 124 passengers and crew members.

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Though no reason was given for the sudden shifting of Mathur, the development came at a time when the people in Ladakh were up in arms in support of their various demands, including full statehood and safeguards under the sixth schedule of the Constitution to the region.

The agitation jointly spearheaded by the Leh-based Apex body of People’s Movement for 6th schedule and Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA) is seeking two separate parliamentary constituencies for Leh and Kargil districts, recruitment and job reservation for the youth of Ladakh along with creation of a public service commission.

(With Agency inputs)