Centre asks Madhya Pradesh governor to quit

Madhya Pradesh Governor Ram Naresh Yadav may become the biggest casualty of the high-profile recruitment scam as the Centre has asked him to quit the gubernatorial post.

Though there was a speculation of Yadav putting in papers following the registration of a case against him in the multi-crore Vyapam scam on Tuesday, Union Home Ministry officials, until late Wednesday evening, said they have “no confirmation” about his resignation.

“No. There is nothing like that,” Rajendra Rajput, Press Officer to the governor, told Deccan Herald over phone from Bhopal when asked whether Yadav has resigned.

Home Minister Rajnath Singh briefed Prime Minister Narendra Modi about the situation amid indications that the Centre may favour Shivraj  Singh Chouhan recommending a CBI probe into the scam.

Following reports that Yadav was named in the FIR, the Home Ministry sought details from the state government and later asked him to resign as his position became untenable. “Yadav is left with little choice,” a senior official said.

Yadav, who was sworn in as Governor on September 8, 2011, has tenure till September 7, 2016. He was the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh between 1977 and 1979 after lifting of Emergency. He quit Janata Party to join the Congress.

The issue got a mention in the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday when Leader of Opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad said that “earlier, it was thought that the governor had immunity but perhaps that is not the case in the BJP-ruled states. There were allegations against Chief Minister Chouhan but no enquiry has been ordered”.

The Special Task Force probing the scam named the governor on Tuesday after the Madhya Pradesh High Court on February 20 said the agency was “free to proceed against the high dignitary”.

Yadav is accused of recommending five candidates for recruitment as forest guards to the top officials of Madhya Pradesh Professional Examination Board (MPPEB), which conducted the tests.Yadav’s name cropped up after the arrest of his Officer on Special Duty Dhanraj Yadav in the scam. His son Shailesh’s was named by an accused who claimed that he was paid money for recruitment of contractual teachers.

The governor was booked under various sections of Indian Penal Code, including cheating and Prevention of Corruption Act. The Congress has been demanding a CBI probe into the widespread irregularities in conduct of various examinations by MPPEB.