WB Governor to retire on Sunday; Bihar Governor asked to take charge

West Bengal Governor Gopalkrishna Gandhi, whose relationship with the Left front government in the state was strained in the latter part of his term, will demit office on Sunday.

West Bengal Governor Gopalkrishna Gandhi, whose relationship with the Left front government in the state was strained in the latter part of his term, will demit office on Sunday.

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A Rashtrapati Bhavan communique said Bihar Governor Devanand Konwar had been asked to discharge the functions after the end of the term of Gandhi, until regular arrangement is made.

"The five year term of Gopalkrishna Gandhi as Governor of West Bengal will expire on December 13, 2009. President (Pratibha Patil) has appointed Devanand Konwar, Governor of Bihar, to discharge the functions of the Governor of West Bengal with effect from December 14, 2009, in addition to his own duties, until regular arrangements are made," it said.

Grandson of the Father of Nation, Gandhi, who had hit it off well with the Left front in the earlier part of his first term, started developing differences in the later part of the term.

It started with some issues like power situation in the state and got more pronounced during the Nandigram violence. He sought to play the role of a peace broker during the Singur crises between Mamta Banerjee and the Government.

Sometime ago, there were reports that 64-year-old Gandhi was keen for a second term but he strongly denied them.