Ajay Kumar Bhalla, Vijay Kumar Singh to be new governors of Manipur, Mizoram; check other appointments

President Droupadi Murmu on 24 December appointed former Union Home Secretary Ajay Kumar Bhalla as the governor of strife-torn Manipur, while ex-Army chief Vijay Kumar Singh is the new Mizoram governor.

President Murmu even transferred Kerala Governor Arif Mohammed Khan to Bihar as part of gubernatorial appointments.

According to the Rashtrapati Bhavan, Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar has been named the governor of Kerala in place of Khan. Also, Mizoram Governor Hari Babu Kambhampati has been appointed as the new Odisha Governor in place of Das.

In other news, President Murmu accepted the resignation of Odisha Governor Raghubar Das.

These appointments will take effect from the dates they will assume charge of their respective offices, it added.

Justice V Ramasubramanian as new NHRC chief:

V Ramasubramanian, the former Supreme Court judge, has been appointed the new chairperson of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC). He is preceded by Justice (retd) Arun Kumar Mishra, who completed his term on June 1. Since then, the post of NHRC chairperson had been lying vacant.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led high-powered committee convened a meeting on December 18, where the next chairperson of the NHRC was selected, PTI reported citing sources.

President appoints NHRC chairperson on the recommendation of the selection committee. Typically, a former chief justice of India or a retired judge of the top court are appointed as NHRC chief. “The NHRC received the communication about the appointment today,” PTI quoted a senior official as saying.

Taking to social media platform X, the NHRC said, "Hon'ble President of India appoints Shri Justice V. Ramasubramanian (Retd.) as the Chairperson, and Shri Priyank Kanoongo and Dr. Justice Bidyut Ranjan Sarangi (Retd.) as the Members of the National Human Rights Commission(NHRC), India."

Priyank Kanoongo served as a chairperson of the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) earlier.

With agency inputs.