Minister's "Qualified Person" Defence On Governor Post For Ex Judge

Union minister and BJP leader Anurag Thakur on Monday defended the appointment of retired Supreme Court judge S Abdul Nazeer as the governor of Andhra Pradesh, saying a qualified person can be given any post and his ability should not be questioned.

The Congress had attacked the government over the appointment of S Abdul Nazeer, who was part of the historic 2019 Ayodhya verdict, and called the move a "great threat" to the independence of the judiciary.

Responding to a query on the appointment of S Abdul Nazeer, Mr Thakur, who holds Sports, and Information & Broadcasting portfolios, said, "Any 'kabil' (qualified) person can be given any post. That person's ability should not be questioned". 

Mr Thakur didn't respond to queries on the Hindenburg Research report which had alleged stock manipulation by Adani Group, a charge denied by the Gautam Adani-led conglomerate.

S Abdul Nazeer, who retired on January 4, was part of several path-breaking verdicts, including those on the politically sensitive Ayodhya land dispute, instant 'triple talaq' and the one that held the right to privacy to be a fundamental right.

The government on Sunday appointed six new faces as governors and four BJP leaders, besides carrying out a rejig of the gubernatorial posts in seven states.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)