Kiran Bedi removed as Lieutenant Governor of Puducherry, Telangana Governor given additional charge

Kiran Bedi was on Tuesday removed as the Lieutenant Governor of Puducherry. A Rashtrapati Bhavan spokesperson said, "Kiran Bedi ceases to hold the post of LG Puducherry." Telangana Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan has been given additional charge of Puducherry, added the Rashtrapati Bhavan spokesperson. 

"The President has directed that Dr Kiran Bedi shall cease to hold the office of the Lieutenant-Governor of Puducherry and has appointed Dr Tamilisai Soundararajan, Governor of Telangana, to discharge the functions of the Lieutenant-Governor of Puducherry, in addition to her own duties, with effect from the date she assumes charge of her office until regular arrangements for the office of Lieutenant-Governor of Puducherry are made," Ajay Kumar Singh, press secretary to the President, said in a statement.

Earlier senior Congress legislator Malladi Krishna Rao had urged President Ram Nath Kovind to replace Bedi for her alleged interference in administration in the union territory. 

Earlier in the day, Puducherry Social Welfare Minister Kandasamy said the cabinet headed by Chief Minister Narayanasamy will resign after the resignations of Congress legislators in Puducherry ahead of the assembly elections later this year.

In a video, Kandaswamy said, "Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Puducherry L-G Kiran Bedi have been harassing the Congress government for four and a half years. They are trying to dissolve the regime. We are working to dissolve the cabinet headed by CM Narayanasamy and win the assembly elections again."

Earlier, Congress MLA from Kamaraj Nagar constituency, A John Kumar had resigned from his post, citing "dissatisfaction with the Congress government."

This comes ahead of the Legislative Assembly polls scheduled to be held in the Union Territory. Chief Election Commissioner of India (CEC) Sunil Arora has said that the election will be held at the same time in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry. However, the dates of the polls are yet to be announced.