Former Jammu and Kashmir Governor Satyapal Malik passes away
Former Jammu and Kashmir Governor Satyapal Malik passed away on Tuesday at Delhi's Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital after a prolonged illness. He breathed his last at 1:12 pm.
Satyapal Malik's personal secretary KS Rana has confirmed this. He said, "Satyapal Malik passed away this afternoon at Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital."
Apart from Jammu and Kashmir, Satyapal Malik had served as the governor of Bihar, Goa and Meghalaya.
Satyapal Malik was suffering from kidney disease for a long time. On May 11, he was admitted to the hospital when his condition worsened. He was the governor of Jammu and Kashmir, Bihar, Goa and Meghalaya. In 2018, he also took additional charge of the Governor of Odisha.
Article 370 was removed during his tenure
Satyapal was the governor of Jammu and Kashmir from 23 August 2018 to 30 October 2019. It was during his tenure that Article 370 was removed from Jammu and Kashmir on this day, 5 August 2019.
Satyapal Malik was accused of corruption
On May 22, the CBI filed a chargesheet against 5 people including Satyapal Malik in a corruption case related to the Kiru Hydropower Project in Jammu and Kashmir. It alleges irregularities in civil works contracts worth about Rs 2,200 crore.
The CBI raided Satyapal Malik's hideout on 22 February 2024 in connection with the same case. It also raided 29 other locations in Delhi.
Malik had alleged he was offered bribe
Satyapal Malik had said at a program in Jhunjhunu, Rajasthan on 17 October 2021 that he was offered a bribe of crores while he was the Governor of Jammu and Kashmir. During that time, two files had come to him. One of these was of a big industrialist and the other of a person who was a minister in the coalition government of Mehbooba Mufti and the BJP.
Malik had said that his secretaries told him that there was a scam in it, after which he canceled both the deals. He was offered Rs 150 crore each for both the files. Malik said, 'I had said that I have come with five kurta-pyjamas and will leave from here with only that. When CBI asks, I will also tell the names of those who made the offer.'
CBI registered FIR in two different cases
CBI had registered 2 FIRs in this case. The first FIR is related to alleged corruption in issuing contracts worth about Rs 60 crore. This amount was taken as a bribe from an insurance company for awarding the contract of Jammu and Kashmir Employees Health Care Insurance Scheme in 2017-18.
The second FIR is related to corruption in awarding a contract of Rs 2,200 crore to a private firm for civil work of Kiru Hydro Power Project (HEP) in 2019. CBI is investigating both these cases.
Rahul Gandhi interviewed Malik
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi interviewed former Jammu and Kashmir Governor Satyapal Malik on 14 October. In this 28-minute conversation, Rahul discussed many issues with Satyapal Malik including violence in Manipur, Pulwama attack, farmers' movement and caste census. Malik told Rahul that only 6 months are left for the elections. I am giving it in writing that now Modi government will not come.
For the last few years, Satyapal Malik was constantly criticizing the Modi government on many issues, be it the farmers' movement or the removal of Article 370 from Jammu and Kashmir.
Many of his statements created a lot of controversy.
Prakash Kumar Pandey