Dehradun: Dr Dhal Singh Bisen took oath as Governor of Uttarakhand at Lok Bhavan in Dehradun on Monday, with Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami present at the ceremony.
Bisen was appointed to the post by President Droupadi Murmu on October 12, as part of a reshuffle that covered six states. He is a former Lok Sabha MP from Balaghat in Madhya Pradesh.
In Madhya Pradesh, Bisen has served as an MLA and as a cabinet minister, holding portfolios including school education, forest, transport and mines. He also chaired the state's Fourth Finance Commission.
His appointment is one of several announced together. Sudha Yadav was named Governor of Karnataka, Braj Mohan Ram of Odisha and Dushyant Kumar Gautam of Sikkim, while Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar was moved to Tamil Nadu and Om Prakash Mathur to Kerala.
The reshuffle has brought renewed attention to the constitutional role of governors and to state-Centre relations, at a time when several states are headed for elections.
The governor is the constitutional head of a state, with responsibilities defined by the Constitution of India, including assent to bills passed by the legislature and the appointment of the chief minister.
The reshuffle, announced together, involved the reassignment of the incumbent Governors of Sikkim and Kerala. Governors in India serve as the constitutional head of a state and act on the advice of the council of ministers, except in matters where the Constitution gives them discretion. They give assent to bills passed by the legislature and appoint the chief minister.