Nagaland Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio and Deputy Chief Minister Yanthungo Patton on Friday welcomed the appointment of senior BJP leader Nand Kishore Yadav as the new Governor of the state.
President Droupadi Murmu on Thursday announced the appointment and transfer of Governors and Lieutenant Governors across several states and Union Territories. As part of the reshuffle, former Bihar Minister and Assembly Speaker Nand Kishore Yadav has been appointed as the Governor of Nagaland.
Taking to social media platform X, Chief Minister Rio wrote, "On behalf of the people of Nagaland, I congratulate Shri Nand Kishore Yadav Ji on his appointment as the Governor of Nagaland. I look forward to working together for the welfare and continued progress of the state."
Deputy Chief Minister Patton also congratulated the new Governor in a post on X. "Congratulations to Shri Nand Kishore Yadav Ji on being appointed as the Hon'ble Governor of Nagaland. With decades of public service, I am sure he will guide the state with wisdom and dedication while strengthening the path of peace, development and prosperity for the people. My best wishes for a productive and meaningful tenure ahead," he wrote.
Yadav will replace Ajay Kumar Bhalla, who had been holding the additional charge of Nagaland while serving as the Governor of Manipur since August 25 last year.
Bhalla, a former Union Home Secretary, was given additional charge of Nagaland by President Murmu on August 16 last year, a day after the death of then Governor La. Ganesan, who passed away in Chennai on August 15 at the age of 80.
A senior BJP leader from Bihar, Nand Kishore Yadav has been a prominent political figure in the state for decades, particularly in the capital Patna where he built a strong electoral base.
He represented the Patna Sahib constituency in the Bihar Legislative Assembly multiple times, serving as an MLA for more than three decades.
In successive NDA governments in Bihar, Yadav held key portfolios including Road Construction, Urban Development and Tourism. His tenure as Road Construction Minister coincided with major highway expansion projects during the Nitish Kumar-led governments.
Following the 2020 Bihar Assembly elections, Yadav was elected Speaker of the Bihar Legislative Assembly, a constitutional role that required him to step away from active party politics while presiding over legislative proceedings.
Seventy-three-year-old Yadav joined the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) in 1969 and became active in the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) in 1971.
He later served as President of the BJP's Bihar unit from 1998 to 2003 and also held portfolios such as Health and Family Welfare and Tourism in the Bihar government. He was also the Leader of the Opposition in the Bihar Assembly from 2013 to 2015.
In February 2024, Yadav was elected as the 17th Speaker of the Bihar Legislative Assembly.
His appointment as Governor of Nagaland marks his transition from decades of electoral politics to a constitutional role, bringing an experienced legislative administrator to a state where the Governor's office has historically played an important role in political and peace process matters.
