Farewell to Mr Duggal
- Hueiyen Lanpao Editorial :: August 30, 2014 -

Farewell Party of His Excellency, V.K.Duggal Governor of Manipur at Rajbhavan :: Pix - Kiran Singh (DIPR)

Considering the vindictive nature of the Government of the day at the Centre towards the Governors appointed by the previous Government, the resignation of Vinod Kumar Duggal as the Governor of Manipur may not come as a surprise to many people.

As a matter of fact, before him, eight Governors appointed by the previous Congress-led UPA Government have already succumbed to the insidious pressures of the BJP-led NDA Government and given in their resignation papers.

Nonetheless, we can’t help at finding some surprise elements in the decision taken by Mr Duggal to quit the gubernatorial post so suddenly.

Of course, he is one person who had always said (even before the the BJP-led NDA Government came to power at the Centre) that he would be more than eager to quit his post if there were any nudging or feeler from the new Government so that he could take the much required rest and play golf to his heart’s content.

But unlike the other eight Governors before him, who were either forced to resign or sacked so aggressively and in such a humiliating manner, there was no inkling or indication to show that Narendra Modi Government was in a hurry to remove Mr Duggal from his post nor was there any instances of Mr Duggal earning dis-favour of the new Prime Minister, or, for that matter, anyone in the new Ministries.

In fact, just two days before he submitted his resignation letter, Mr Duggal had been asked by the President of India to continue with the additional charge as the Governor of Mizoram as well.

So, what could be the possible reason for Mr Duggal to give in his resignation letter to become the 9th Governor appointed by the previous UPA Government to vacate the office of the administrative head of a State since the BJP-led NDA Government came to power in May this year?

It is quite obvious that when the rumours of his impending resignation started doing the round, even the senior officials in Raj Bhavan and those close to Mr Duggal were in the dark about what was going on in his mind.

Whatever may be the reasons for his resignation, one thing that we could say for sure is that in a political set up where political revenge against anything that is associated with the previous Government is becoming a norm rather than an exception, no one in his right frame of mind and true to self would be able to continue working in such an environment any longer, with or without nudging from anywhere.

As we bid farewell to the outgoing Governor, all that we would like to say is that media persons in Manipur would surely miss his regular invitation for a ‘brief interaction’ over a cup of tea at the sprawling lawn or the opulent visitors’ room of the Raj Bhavan.

The opening up of gate as well as doors of Raj Bhavan to media persons for exchanging ideas and opinions on various issues of the State and the Nation over a cup of tea was something none of his predecessors, who would rather remain confined securely within the fortified complex of Raj Bhavan, had ever done, or, perhaps, never thought of.

But it was a good way to build rapport with the Fourth Estate, which the State administration has always overlooked.

Anyway, we wish Dr Duggal enough Tee-time and happy golfing.