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G V G Krishnamurthy may be sent to Maharashtra as governor

Efforts are on to appoint Election Commissioner G V G Krishnamurthy as the new governor of Maharashtra, replacing Dr P C Alexander whose term is about to end.

The move, if successful, is likely to create a furore in Maharashtra.

The ruling Shiv Sena in the state had run into A HREF=../../dec/15poll.htm>trouble with him when he had insisted on the party holding internal elections. He had threatened to disqualify the party if it failed to hold organisational polls before the 1998 Lok Sabha election.

Sena chief Bal Thackeray fretted and fumed over this Election Commission diktat, but had to comply with the order.

Now, faced with the prospect of having the man, who reined in his party, ensconced in Raj Bhavan, it is anybody's guess as to what his reaction will be.

The Bharatiya Janata Party-led front at the Centre is rather keen on sending Krishnamurthy to Bombay, not for any other reason but that its leaders are impressed with the election commissioner. Krishnamurthy, who comes from Andhra Pradesh, had himself suggested Maharashtra when asked his choice by the government, reveal sources.

Apart from this, even Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, pleasing whom seems to a priority item with the BJP government, has seconded the fellow Telugu's choice.

The Sena, which runs the government in Maharashtra in league with the BJP and which supports the A B Vajpayee government at the Centre, cannot be very pleased about this development.

But observers feel that, given Thackeray's desire to see through a BJP government at the Centre, the Sena may downplay the impending gubernatorial appointment.

Compiled from the Marathi media by Prasanna D Zore

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