After some Governors, it was the turn of vice chairman of the National Disaster Management Authority M. Shashidhar Reddy and five of its members to resign after the new government asked them to quit their posts.
There were reports that the government has also asked the chairpersons and members of the National Commissions for Women, the National Commission for SCs and STs and the head of the Indian Council for Cultural Relations to resign but there was no confirmation.
Apart from Mr. Reddy, the members who have resigned are former CISF director-general K.M. Singh, former civil aviation secretary K.N. Shrivastava, Maj Gen (Retd) J K Bansal, former director of Bhabha Automic Research Centre B. Bhattacharjee and former CBI special director K. Salim Ali.
“I have sent my resignation on Tuesday to pave the way for the Prime Minister to reconstitute the NDMA. Probably the Prime Minister has a view on it. I am hopeful that the reconstitution process will be completed soon,” Mr. Reddy told PTI in New Delhi.
The resignations came after calls were made by Union Home Secretary Anil Goswami to step down in the wake of change of government. They were all appointed by previous UPA government.
The NDMA is headed by the Prime Minister. The vice chairman enjoys the rank of a Cabinet Minister while a member enjoys the rank of a Union Minister of State.
The three members who have not resigned so far include former CRPF director-general J.K. Sinha, medical expert Muzaffar Ahmed and former ocean development department secretary Harsh K. Gupta
Mr. Sinha said he was away from Delhi and would do the needful once he returns to the capital.
Mr. Reddy was first appointed as member of the NDMA in 2005 and promoted as vice chairman in December 2010.
A few members were appointed in 2005 and got reappointment after completion of their five-year tenure. Others were appointed in the last two to three years.
The members met on Wednesday and today to discuss the issue of resignation and then put in their papers.
