VIJAYAWADA: Senior BJP leader Biswa Bhusan Harichandan was sworn in as the Governor of Andhra Pradesh in a ceremony at Raj Bhavan in Vijayawada on Wednesday. He was appointed in place of ESL Narasimhan.
The 84-year-old strongman of saffron party from Odisha had served in different capacities in the party and also served as Ministry of Law, Revenue and Fisheries in Odisha State Government from 2004 to 2009.
Acting Chief Justice of Andhra Pradesh High Court Justice C Praveen Kumar administered the oath of office and secrecy to Harichandan.
Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy, new Governor’s wife Suprava and family members, Leader of Opposition N Chandrababu Naidu, Speaker Thammineni Sitaram, Ministers, MLAs and MLCs from both ruling and opposition and senior officials were present. Chief Secretary LV Subrahmanyam read out the letter of appointment of the Governor issued by the President of India.
On his arrival at Raj Bhavan, the new Governor was given a Guard of Honour. Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy received Harichandan at Gannavaram Airport on Tuesday evening. Before being sworn in as the new Governor, Harichandan along with his family members offered prayers at Goddess Kanaka Durga temple atop Indrakeeladri Hill.
Biswa Bhusan Harichandan is the first full-time Governor of Andhra Pradesh. His predecessor ESL Narasimhan, who was governor of undivided Andhra Pradesh at the time of state bifurcation continued as Governor for both the States. On July 16, 2019, President Ram Nath Kovind appointed Biswa Bhushan Harichandan as the new governor of Andhra Pradesh.
Born on August 3, 1934, Harichandan did his post-graduation in Economics and also studied law. He joined Bharatiya Jana Sangha in 1971 and become its National Executive Member and its State General Secretary till the formation of Janata Party in 1977. During the Emergency period, he was detained under the MISA Act.
When BJP formed in 1980, he was made its Odisha State president and he served in the capacity till 1988 before joining Janata Dal. But he was back in BJP in 1996. A five-time MLA, he represented both Chilka and Bhubaneswar Central Assembly Constituencies. He was part of several agitations in Odisha in the 70s and 80s against Congress rule.