Indian politics: Ahead of the West Bengal Assembly elections, CV Ananda Bose tendered his resignation as the Governor of the state on Thursday evening, after a tenure of nearly three-and-a-half years. According to the Lok Bhawan officials, Bose stepped down while he was in state capital Kolkata. In a conversation with news agency PTI, Bose confirmed his move, stating that he had spent enough time at the Governor’s office, but did not spill the beans behind his sudden resignation.

TMC eyes fourth consecutive term in Bengal

Notably, the move comes weeks before the state heads into crucial Assembly elections. The ruling All India Trinamool Congress (TMC) has been eyeing a fourth consecutive term in the state, while the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is persevering in efforts to derail the Mamata Banerjee-led government. 

Mamata reacts, expresses shock

Expressing shock over Bose’s sudden resignation, West Bengal Chief Minister (CM) Mamata Banerjee took to ‘X’ (formerly Twitter). In her ‘X’ post, she mentioned she was ‘deeply concerned’ and hinted that pressure from the Union Home Minister’s end could have possibly influenced the decision, particularly on the eve of elections. 

She further alleged that the constitutional conventions had not been adhered to in the appointment of a successor. 

RN Ravi the next Governor of Bengal?

CM Banerjee claimed that she had been informed that RN Ravi would be appointed as the next Governor of West Bengal. She also slammed the Centre for not consulting her before landing on the decision, and termed it as a blow to cooperative federalism. 

Notably, Ravi currently serves as the Governor of Tamil Nadu and shares a strained relationship with the state’s CM, MK Stalin. Tamil Nadu is also poised to enter the Assembly polls around the same time as West Bengal.