Ladakh Gets A New Lieutenant Governor Amid Protests Over Statehood Demand

Amid an ongoing agitation by Ladakhi people demanding statehood and special status under the sixth schedule of the constitution, the Centre today appointed a new Lieutenant Governor for the union territory of Ladakh.

BD Mishra, a former brigadier of the Indian Army, and present Governor of Arunachal Pradesh, has been appointed as the LG of Ladakh.

On Saturday, Lieutenant Governor Radha Krishna Mathur quietly left his office in Leh after saying goodbye to his staff on Saturday.

This morning, a communique issued by the Rashtrapati Bhavan said that the President of India has accepted the resignations of Bhagat Singh Koshyari as Governor of Maharashtra and Shri Radha Krishnan Mathur as Lt. Governor of Ladakh. The President has also made appointments of Governors of 11 states and Lt Governor of the Ladakh UT.

Sources say, on Saturday, Mr Mathur packed his bags and informed the staff that he was leaving, without citing any reason for the sudden decision.

It's unclear if Mr Mathur was asked to resign by the Centre, or he has chosen to leave amid ongoing agitation by the Ladakhi people.

During his over three-year-long tenure as Lt Governor, 69-year-old Radha Krishna Mathur spent more time in Delhi than in Leh.

Mr Mathur, a former defence secretary, was appointed as the first Lt Governor of Ladakh after Jammu and Kashmir was stripped of its statehood and divided into two union territories in August 2019.

People in Leh who had celebrated the union territory status in 2019 have risen against the central rule. After three years under UT status, Ladakhi leaders say they were better off in Jammu and Kashmir, and will not allow the region to be kept under a permanent Governor's rule.