Kolkata, 12 March (H.S.): Ravindra Narayan Ravi was sworn in as the new Governor of West Bengal at Lok Bhavan (formerly Raj Bhavan) in Kolkata on Thursday.

Chief Justice of the Calcutta High Court, Justice Sujoy Paul, administered the oath of office and secrecy to Ravi at a ceremony held around 11.30 am.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, Chief Secretary Nandini Chakraborty, Assembly Speaker Biman Banerjee and Left Front chairman Biman Bose were among those present at the swearing-in ceremony.

The national song Vande Mataram and the national anthem Jana Gana Mana were played before and after the oath-taking. After the ceremony, the new Governor interacted with the chief minister and other dignitaries present.

Ravi was appointed as the Governor of West Bengal following the resignation of C V Ananda Bose. Prior to this appointment, he served as the Governor of Tamil Nadu.

During his tenure in Tamil Nadu, Ravi had several disagreements with the ruling DMK government over various issues. Differences between the Governor and the government led by Chief Minister M K Stalin had come to the fore on multiple occasions, particularly over the clearance of several bills.

Earlier, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had raised questions over the sudden resignation of Bose. In a post on social media, she said she was “shocked and deeply concerned” by the development and added that she would not be surprised if the Governor had come under pressure from the Union Home Minister ahead of the upcoming Assembly elections in the state.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Priyanka Pandey