JOIN USThe endgame seemed to be approaching fast for Madhya Pradesh Governor Ram Naresh Yadav with the Centre on Thursday looking at the possibility of his removal following a Supreme Court notice to him in the Vyapam scam.
Home Minister Rajnath Singh held discussions with Home Secretary L C Goyal. He also held a meeting with President Pranab Mukherjee, whose “withdrawal of pleasure” would mean Yadav’s exit.
There was no official word from Rashtrapati Bhavan or the Home Ministry about the meeting. However, it is learnt that Yadav’s issue was discussed. Officials claimed it was a pre-scheduled meeting but it created a buzz as it came on the day the Supreme Court issued notices to Yadav, the Centre and the MP government over pleas seeking his ouster.
Speculation was rife that a decision on continuance of 87-year-old Yadav as Governor would be taken after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s return from abroad on July 13. However, officials refused to confirm or deny it.
Official circles felt that the political leadership might not hurry into a decision as they had allowed Yadav, a Congress leader, to continue despite being an UPA appointee. Yadav, a former Uttar Pradesh chief minister, was appointed MP Governor on August 26, 2011 and his term ends on August 25, 2016.
Once he loses the gubernatorial position, Yadav would have a tough road ahead as it would mean that he would also lose the constitutional immunity enjoyed by Governors against criminal investigation and subsequent prosecution.
The Congress has asked why Yadav has been continued in office even as other UPA-appointees were removed. It shows that Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan has something to hide, said Congress leaders.
Yadav’s name cropped up during investigations and an FIR was filed against him in February this year on charges of rigging the forest guard recruitment examination conducted by Vyapam. His son Shailesh, who was found dead under mysterious circumstances in March in their Lucknow residence, was also an accused in the scam.
However, the FIR was quashed as Yadav enjoyed constitutional immunity following which a group of people approached the Supreme Court seeking his removal. While the opposition argued that the apex court decision has made Yadav’s continuance untenable, others feel that the court has not made any adverse remarks against him or the Centre at this stage. However, the thinking in the government is that he will have to go.