Jammu and Kashmir L-G Murmu said to have quit on first anniversary of Article 370 scrapping

Officials in the J&K L-G office refused to confirm or deny the move but two senior officials in the administration said Murmu had resigned.

Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Girish Chandra Murmu is said to have resigned | Photo: ANI

Srinagar: Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor and senior IAS officer Girish Chandra Murmu is believed to have resigned from his post.

Two officials in the government of the union territory told ThePrint that the decision came late Wednesday. The L-G did not respond to calls or messages sent to him.

Officials in the L-G’s office, however, refused to confirm or deny the development. But the two senior officials in the J&K administration said that Murmu had resigned, though they did not state the reason for the decision.

The move comes on the first anniversary of the central government scrapping Article 370, which gave Jammu and Kashmir special powers.

The officials said Murmu was in Srinagar until Wednesday morning but took a flight to Jammu, where he had planned meetings over the next couple of days, in the afternoon.

“Murmu was supposed to travel to New Delhi after his Jammu visit later this week,” one of the officials said.

Two other sources said the L-G office had not received any formal communication until now, but added the move was on the cards.

ThePrint had reported on 28 July that there might be a major reshuffle in the J&K bureaucracy.

Rift between chief secretary & L-G

Murmu’s purported resignation comes at a time when a rift between his office and that of the chief secretary has allegedly been growing. ThePrint had reported about the tussle between the two offices on 29 June.

According to one of the officials cited above, Murmu could now be posted as the Comptroller and Auditor General of India, and former home secretary Rajiv Mehrishi could  be his replacement as the J&K Lieutenant Governor.