Mayankote Kelath Narayanan
Encyclopedia
Mayankote Kelath Narayanan (born 23 July 1934), commonly referred to as M. K. Narayanan, is the current Governor of India
n state West Bengal
and was the National Security Advisor
(NSA) to the Prime Minister of India
until January 2010. He was appointed to this post on January 25, 2005, three weeks after the previous NSA, J. N. Dixit, died on January 3, 2005. He offered to resign on 30 November 2008 over the attacks in Mumbai that killed nearly 200 people, but his resignation was not accepted by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh
. He experienced heavy criticism after the Mumbai terrorist attacks due to his preoccupation with Sri Lanka and the LTTE, instead of what others considered to be India's chief threat, Kashmir insurgents and Pakistan.
, a district of the state Kerala
.
Narayanan completed his graduation from the Madras Christian College. He is married to Padmini Narayanan and the couple have a son, Vijay, and a daughter, Meena. Their son-in-law Ajit Nambiar is Chairman and Managing Director of BPL Ltd.
(IB) from 1987 to 1990, before heading the Joint Intelligence Committee. He became Chief of the IB again in 1991, before retiring in 1992. He was the Special Advisor for Internal Security to the Prime Minister of India beginning in May 2004.
He is alleged to plant his staunch supporters as RAW and IB chiefs. He grew infamous when he wanted to sack the then RAW chief C. D. Sahay. He began systematically undermining Sahay; he planted his own man, Hormis Tharakan, former Kerala police chief who was occasionally deputed to RAW, as Sahay’s eventual successor. The then NSA, J. N. Dixit
, countered that Narayanan himself had not been sacked when Rajiv Gandhi was assassinated (Narayanan was the IB chief), and that no intelligence heads rolled after the Kargil intrusions were discovered
He presided over a post-Rabindra Singh(a RAW joint secretary suspected of being a double agent, defected in 2004. Singh was handing RAW secrets over to the USA, to where he fled from Kathmandu via Vienna once he was discovered) defection enquiry that has not damaged a single officer’s career; in some cases, the opposite has happened. Shashi Bhushan Tomar, the last man to see Rabindra Singh after the latter’s car was searched as he left RAW HQ in Delhi on April 19, 2004. Tomar, suspect colleagues, tipped Singh off that he was under RAW surveillance, enabling the double agent to evade his stake-out and escaped and Tomar is now posted in New York.
On 24th Jan 2010 he became the governor of West Bengal. He took over from Gopalkrishna Gandhi
who had a few disagreements with the CPM-ruled West Bengal on critical issues like violence in Nandigram and Singur.
in 2007.
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
n state West Bengal
West Bengal
West Bengal is a state in the eastern region of India and is the nation's fourth-most populous. It is also the seventh-most populous sub-national entity in the world, with over 91 million inhabitants. A major agricultural producer, West Bengal is the sixth-largest contributor to India's GDP...
and was the National Security Advisor
National Security Advisor (India)
The National Security Advisor of India is a member of the National Security Council , and the primary advisor to the Prime Minister, the Indian Cabinet and the NSC on internal and international security issues.-Overview:...
(NSA) to the Prime Minister of India
Prime Minister of India
The Prime Minister of India , as addressed to in the Constitution of India — Prime Minister for the Union, is the chief of government, head of the Council of Ministers and the leader of the majority party in parliament...
until January 2010. He was appointed to this post on January 25, 2005, three weeks after the previous NSA, J. N. Dixit, died on January 3, 2005. He offered to resign on 30 November 2008 over the attacks in Mumbai that killed nearly 200 people, but his resignation was not accepted by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh
Manmohan Singh
Manmohan Singh is the 13th and current Prime Minister of India. He is the only Prime Minister since Jawaharlal Nehru to return to power after completing a full five-year term. A Sikh, he is the first non-Hindu to occupy the office. Singh is also the 7th Prime Minister belonging to the Indian...
. He experienced heavy criticism after the Mumbai terrorist attacks due to his preoccupation with Sri Lanka and the LTTE, instead of what others considered to be India's chief threat, Kashmir insurgents and Pakistan.
Early life
M. K. Narayanan hails from PalakkadPalakkad
Palakkad , formerly known as Palghat, is a municipality and a town in the state of Kerala in southern India, spread over an area of 26.60 km2.The city is situated about north of state capital Thiruvananthapuram. It is the administrative headquarters of Palakkad District...
, a district of the state Kerala
Kerala
or Keralam is an Indian state located on the Malabar coast of south-west India. It was created on 1 November 1956 by the States Reorganisation Act by combining various Malayalam speaking regions....
.
Narayanan completed his graduation from the Madras Christian College. He is married to Padmini Narayanan and the couple have a son, Vijay, and a daughter, Meena. Their son-in-law Ajit Nambiar is Chairman and Managing Director of BPL Ltd.
Career
M. K. Narayanan headed the Intelligence BureauIntelligence Bureau (India)
The Intelligence Bureau also known as IB is India's internal intelligence agency and reputedly the world's oldest intelligence agency. It was recast as the Central Intelligence Bureau in 1947 under the Ministry of Home Affairs...
(IB) from 1987 to 1990, before heading the Joint Intelligence Committee. He became Chief of the IB again in 1991, before retiring in 1992. He was the Special Advisor for Internal Security to the Prime Minister of India beginning in May 2004.
He is alleged to plant his staunch supporters as RAW and IB chiefs. He grew infamous when he wanted to sack the then RAW chief C. D. Sahay. He began systematically undermining Sahay; he planted his own man, Hormis Tharakan, former Kerala police chief who was occasionally deputed to RAW, as Sahay’s eventual successor. The then NSA, J. N. Dixit
Jyotindra Nath Dixit
Jyotindra Nath Dixit , commonly referred as J. N. Dixit, was an Indian diplomat and former Indian Foreign Secretary , the top bureaucratic job in the Ministry of External Affairs...
, countered that Narayanan himself had not been sacked when Rajiv Gandhi was assassinated (Narayanan was the IB chief), and that no intelligence heads rolled after the Kargil intrusions were discovered
He presided over a post-Rabindra Singh(a RAW joint secretary suspected of being a double agent, defected in 2004. Singh was handing RAW secrets over to the USA, to where he fled from Kathmandu via Vienna once he was discovered) defection enquiry that has not damaged a single officer’s career; in some cases, the opposite has happened. Shashi Bhushan Tomar, the last man to see Rabindra Singh after the latter’s car was searched as he left RAW HQ in Delhi on April 19, 2004. Tomar, suspect colleagues, tipped Singh off that he was under RAW surveillance, enabling the double agent to evade his stake-out and escaped and Tomar is now posted in New York.
On 24th Jan 2010 he became the governor of West Bengal. He took over from Gopalkrishna Gandhi
Gopalkrishna Gandhi
Gopalkrishna Gandhi was the Governor of West Bengal serving from 2004 to 2009. He is the grandson of Mahatma Gandhi, and son of Devadas Gandhi and Lakshmi Gandhi. His maternal grandfather was C. Rajagopalachari...
who had a few disagreements with the CPM-ruled West Bengal on critical issues like violence in Nandigram and Singur.
Controversy
According to the Outlook magazine, Narayanan asked investigative agencies to go slow when they zeroed-in on Hindutva organizations for Samjhauta Express bombings2007 Samjhauta Express bombings
The 2007 Samjhauta Express bombings were a terrorist attack that occurred around midnight on 18 February 2007 on the Samjhauta Express, a twice-weekly train service connecting Delhi, India, and Lahore, Pakistan. Bombs were set off in two carriages, both filled with passengers, just after the train...
in 2007.
See also
- M.K.Narayanan by B.Raman
- Brijesh MishraBrijesh MishraBrajesh Chandra Mishra was the first National Security Advisor and principal secretary to the former Prime Minister of India, Atal Bihari Vajpayee....
- J N Dixit
- National Security CouncilNational Security Council (India)The National Security Council of India is the apex agency looking into the political, economic, energy and strategic security concerns of India...
- National Security AdvisorNational Security Advisor (India)The National Security Advisor of India is a member of the National Security Council , and the primary advisor to the Prime Minister, the Indian Cabinet and the NSC on internal and international security issues.-Overview:...