SRINAGAR: Manoj Sinha on Friday took oath as the Lieutenant Governor of the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir. He was administered the Oath of Office and Secrecy by Justice Gita Mittal, Chief Justice of Jammu and Kashmir High Court, at a function held at the Raj Bhavan in Srinagar.
He succeeds Girish Chandra Murmu who has now been appointed as the new Comptroller & Auditor General of India (CAG).
Sinha’s political career started when he was elected president of Banaras Hindu University Students’ Union in 1982. He was elected to the Lok Sabha in 1996 and again in 1999. A member of the BJP national council from 1989 to 1996, he was elected to the Lok Sabha for a third term when the BJP swept the polls in 2014. A former Minister of State for Railways, he has held the independent charge of the Ministry of Communications.
An official spokesman said that BVR Subrahmanyam, Chief Secretary, read the Warrant of Appointment.
He said that Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh, Advisors, Rajya Sabha member Nazir Ahmed Laway, BJP Lok Sabha member Jugal Kishore Sharma, Dr Nirmal Singh and Jammu and Kashmir Apni Party leaders including Ghulam Hasan Mir were also present.
Senior officials of civil administration, police, Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), Border Security Force (BSF), Army were also present on the occasion, said an official.
