With 'Puducherry has a very bright future' note, Bedi signs off

After Kiran Bedi was removed as Lieutenant Governor of Puducherry on Tuesday night, she took to Twitter to thank the Government of India for giving her such an opportunity to serve the Union Territory. Whatever was done was a sacred duty, fulfilling my constitutional and moral responsibility. Puducherry has a very bright future. It's now in the hands of the people. Wishing for a prosperous Puducherry," Bedi said on a Twitter note.

New Delhi:Kiran Bedi, who was removed as the Lieutenant Governor of Puducherry on Tuesday night, said that the 'Team Raj Nivas' diligently worked to serve the larger public interest in the union territory during her tenure.

"I thank the government of India for a lifetime experience in serving Puducherry as its Lieutenant Governor. I also thank all who worked with me closely. I can say with a deep sense of satisfaction that during this tenure 'Team Raj Nivas' diligently worked to serve the larger public interest," she said in an open letter on Wednesday.

"Whatever was done was a sacred duty, fulfilling my constitutional and moral responsibility. Puducherry has a very bright future. It's now in the hands of the people. Wishing for a prosperous Puducherry," Bedi added.

Bedi's removal comes in the wake of political turmoil in the state over the last few weeks. After Bedi was removed from her post by President Ram Nath Kovind on Tuesday, Telangana Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan was directed to discharge functions of the Lieutenant-Governor of Puducherry, in addition to her own duties, until a new appointment was made, a statement from the Rashtrapati Bhavan said.

The Congress in Puducherry has seen four among its senior-most leaders and MLAs resign, including the senior leader and former PWD minister A Namasivayam.

On Tuesday its Kamarajnagar MLA A. John Kumar also quit the party.

While Congress MLA Malladi Krishna Rao quit on February 15, former PWD Minister A. Namasivayam and E.Theeppainthan resigned on January 25.

N. Dhanavelu, a Congress member, was disqualified in July last year for alleged anti-party activities.

With back-to-back resignations, Congress's numbers dropped to way below the halfway mark and triggered a crisis. The Congress and DMK had a combined strength of 16 MLAs in the 30-member Puducherry assembly. The resignations have taken the Congress-led government to below 10 and the Opposition now has 14 MLAs.

Puducherry Congress celebrates over Bedi's removal

Puducherry Chief Minister V. Narayanasamy on Tuesday said that Kiran Bedi's removal as Lieutenant Governor is not just a victory for the party but also for the people of the Union Territory.

"The rights of the people of Puducherry weren't being protected as she was interfering with the powers of the government. It is a big lesson that the people of Puducherry people have taught her, (Bedi)," he told reporters while reacting to her removal.

When asked how he would react if the BJP made Bedi their chief ministerial candidate for the upcoming Assembly elections, Narayanasamy said he would welcome it.

The All India Congress Committee (AICC) in-charge of Tamil Nadu, Puducherry and Goa, Dinesh Gundu Rao welcomed Kiran Bedi's removal.

In a tweet, Rao said, "A Victory for the people of #Puducherry. @thekiranbedi has been the worst LG in the history of India."

"She behaved in an autocratic manner and didn't allow the @INCPuducherry government to function properly. Her office was a BJP/RSS office," Rao charged.

Who is Kiran Bedi

Kiran Bedi is an Indian politician, retired IPS Officer, social activist and former tennis player. She was the first female IPS officer and started her service in 1972. She took voluntary retirement in 2007 as Director-General, Bureau of Police Research and Development after serving for almost 35 years.

Bedi joined the India Against Corruption movement under Anna Hazare but parted ways from Arvind Kejriwal during the 2014 general election. She went on to publicly support Narendra Modi, the Prime Ministerial candidate of Bharatiya Janata Party.

After Modi won and became the Prime Minister of India, Bedi joined the BJP and became the BJP's CM candidate in Delhi in the 2015 assembly elections. But she lost the elections from the Krishna Nagar constituency to the Aam Aadmi Party candidate.

With inputs from agencies