Patna January 2, 2025: Arif Mohammad Khan has taken the oath of the 42nd governor of Bihar on Thursday in a swearing-in ceremony held at Rajendra Mandapam, Raj Bhawan Patna.
The oath of office and secretary was administered by the Chief Justice of Patna High Court Krishna Vinod Chandran, in the presence of Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, Deputy Chief Ministers Samrat Choudhary, Vijay Kumar Sinha, Vijay Kumar Chaudhary, Ashok Choudhary, Shrawan Kumar and many other dignitaries.
Khan takes over from Rajendra Vishwanat Arlekar, who was been reassigned as the governor of Kerala.
This reshuffling was part of a broader announcement by the central government on December 24 which included Vijay Kumar Singh as the governor of Mizoram, Dr Hari Babu Kambhampati as governor of Odisha, and Ajay Kumar Bhalla as governor of Manipur.
Historic contest and political significance of Arif Mohammad Khan’s appointment:
Khan is the first Muslim governor of Bihar after 26 years, succeeding AR Kidwai, who served from 1993 to 1998.
His appointment during an election year has fuelled speculation, with some people believe the BJP government as centre aims to impact the Muslim-Yadav (MY) vote bank of the RJD.
Arif Mohammad Khan’s political journey:
Khan’s political career spans multiple parties, including the Janata Party, Lok DAl, Bahujan Samaj Party, Congress and BJP.
He was previously a Union Minister alongside Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar.
Also Read: Governor Arif Mohammad Khan claimed Bihar has a glorious history.
EOM.