Antulay removed me for securing his resignation: O P Mehra

By Staff
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Google Oneindia News

Nagpur, Jan 7 (UNI) Former IAF chief Air Chief Marshal (Retired) O P Mehra said that he was removed as Maharashtra Governor at the behest of the then Chief Minister and present Union Minister for Minority Affairs A R Antulay for securing his resignation in the wake of the cement scandal in 1981.

Speaking informally to mediapersons here yesterday, ACM Mehra said that after coming to know of the cement scandal, he had sent Mr Antulay some papers, asking for his comments. "Mr Antulay came straight to Raj Bhawan and asked me if I had studied the constitution. I replied that I had not, but was acting on the basis of an uncommon commodity--common sense," he recalled.

''Mr Antulay then tendered his resignation. I knew this would happen, and had kept the acceptance letter ready. I sent it to him within half an hour. The news was immediately broadcast on All India Radio (AIR). Even New Delhi came to know from the AIR news,'' he added.

"This left Mr Antulay fuming, who threatened to get me for this,'' the former IAF chief said, adding that "sure enough 18 months later, I was transferred to Jaipur (as Governor of Rajasthan), and alleged that the former CM used his clout with the Prime Minister to get me removed from Mumbai.'' ACM Mehra was in the city for the centenary celebrations of the Air Command House, the official residence here of the Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief (AOC-in-C) of the IAF's Maintenance Command.

The IAF Maintenance Command is headquartered in Nagpur since 1963, having been in Kanpur before that. ACM Mehra was its second AOC-in-C, and the first one after it was shifted to Nagpur, where he served from 1963 to 1967. He went on to become the Chief of the Air Staff.

On retirement, he became Governor of Maharashtra (1980-1982) and later Rajasthan (1982-1985).

The Air Command House was originally the official residence of the Chief Secretary of the erstwhile Central Provinces and Berar (C. P.

and Berar) state, which had its capital in Nagpur.

The Ministry of Defence hired the building after the Maintenance Command shifted to Nagpur in 1963, and bought it in 1985.

UNI

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