It is rumoured in political circles in the State that the appointment of former Assam Governor and a frontline BJP leader Banwarilal Purohit as Governor of Tamil Nadu is an initiative taken with a long-term objective of ‘preponing’ the Assembly polls in the State by 3 years i.e. to hold the mid-term Assembly polls during this period in 2018.

Maharashtra Governor Vidyasagar Rao, who had been acting as interim Governor of Tamil Nadu as well, was relieved with Purohit taking over from yesterday as the State’s Governor preferably for the next five years.  The appointment of Purohit, a known strategist who has helped the BJP grow multifold in many States, as Governor of Tamil Nadu is seen by some as a move towards strengthening the BJP in Tamil Nadu.

A close of master strategist and Vice-President Venkaiah Naidu, Purohit replaced Rao who was appointed as interim Governor during last September after Dr. Rosaiah completed his tenure.  Rao’s tenure was marred by many controversies with frequent demands from opposition parties and the then factions of the AIADMK asking him to order trust-vote in the Assembly on various occasions.

It is also reported that the Centre, which is planning to pre-pone the Lok Sabha polls by a few months to hold them across the country during next year-end, is also planning to ‘club’ mid-term polls to the Tamil Nadu Assembly simultaneously.  The Centre, which is propping up the AIADMK Govt. in the State, doesn’t foresee a ‘long future’ for the regime and hence the idea of mid-term Assembly polls, it is reported.