Justice Sathasivam sworn in as Kerala Governor

Thiruvananthapuram, Sept 5: Former Chief Justice of India P Sathasivam was today sworn in as

Governor. 65-year-old Sathasivam, whose appointment triggered debate in legal and political circles on the propriety of giving gubernatorial assignment to a former CJI, is the 23rd Governor of the state.

He was administered the oath of office by Acting Chief Justice of the Kerala High Court, Justice Ashok Bhushan, at the Raj Bhavan here. He is the first Chief Justice of India to be appointed to the post which is lower in warrant of precedence to the CJI. He is also the first non-political person appointed for a gubernatorial post by the new NDA government.

Chief Minister Oommen Chandy, his cabinet colleagues, Deputy Chairman of the Rajya Sabha P J Kurien and Kerala Assembly Speaker G Karthikeyan were present at the function. However, LDF leaders did not turn up for the function. After his appointment on September 3, Sathasivam had said, "I can utilise my service to the people of the state in a better way compared to other politicians."

"I want to utilise my experience for the people of the particular state (Kerala)," he had said.. Sathasivam, who was appointed as Governor of Kerala replacing Sheila Dikshit, retired as CJI in April this year.

PTI