Vajubhai Rudabhai Vala (born 23 January 1937) is an Indian statesman who was the 18th
Governor of Karnataka
The Governor of Karnataka is the constitutional head of the Indian state of Karnataka. The governor is appointed by the president of India for a term of five years, and holds office at the president's pleasure. The governor is ''de jure'' head ...
from 1 September 2014 to 6 July 2021. He is also the longest serving Governor for Karnataka after
Khurshed Alam Khan
Khurshed Alam Khan (5 February 1919 – 20 July 2013) was an Indian politician and a senior leader of the Indian National Congress political party.Gujarat Legislative Assembly from 2012 to 2014. He is still a member of Bharatiya Janata Party. He served as a Cabinet Minister in the Government of Gujarat, holding various portfolios, such as finance, labour and employment, from 1997 to 2012. He was elected to Gujarat Legislative Assembly from
Rajkot
Rajkot () is the fourth-largest city in the Indian state of Gujarat after Ahmedabad, Vadodara, and Surat, and is in the centre of the Saurashtra region of Gujarat. Rajkot is the 35th-largest metropolitan area in India, with a population of ...
Jan Sangh
The Bharatiya Jana Sangh ( BJS or JS, short name: Jan Sangh, full name: Akhil Bharatiya Jana Sangh; ) (ISO 15919: '' Akhila Bhāratīya Jana Saṅgha '' ) was an Indian right wing political party that existed from 1951 to 1977 and was the pol ...
in 1971. He was jailed for eleven months during the emergency in 1975. He was the Mayor of
Rajkot
Rajkot () is the fourth-largest city in the Indian state of Gujarat after Ahmedabad, Vadodara, and Surat, and is in the centre of the Saurashtra region of Gujarat. Rajkot is the 35th-largest metropolitan area in India, with a population of ...
in the 1980s. Later he contested state assembly elections from Rajkot and served as the Cabinet Minister holding finance, revenue portfolios from 1998 to 2012. He was the finance minister for two terms. He holds the record of presenting budget in Gujarat Legislative Assembly; 18 times as the finance minister. He was elected as the Speaker of assembly in December 2012 and served till August 2014. He was appointed as the
Governor of Karnataka
The Governor of Karnataka is the constitutional head of the Indian state of Karnataka. The governor is appointed by the president of India for a term of five years, and holds office at the president's pleasure. The governor is ''de jure'' head ...
in September 2014.
Vala has also been closely associated with Rajkot Nagarik Sahakari Bank, where he planned, organised and developed the banking service. He was also the Chairman of the bank for five years on-and-off during 1975-90 period.
Controversy
Vala was involved in a controversy during the
2018 Karnataka Legislative Assembly election
The 2018 Karnataka Legislative Assembly election was held on 12 May 2018 in 222 constituencies to the Karnataka Legislative Assembly. The election was postponed in Jayanagar and Rajarajeshwari Nagar, following the death of the MLA B. N. Vijaya ...
Janata Dal (Secular)
The Janata Dal (Secular) is an Indian political party led by former prime minister of India, H. D. Deve Gowda. The party is recognized as a State Party in the states of Karnataka, Kerala and Arunachal Pradesh. It was formed in July 1999 by the ...
. He also gave the new Chief Minister BS Yeddyurappa 15 days to prove his majority in the house. His decision was vehemently opposed by all non-BJP alliance parties in the nation, and the INC approached the Supreme Court in this matter. Supreme court decreed that in case when no coalition/party has clear majority, the governor of the state has the legal power to decide who forms the government in that state. But, the same court shortened the 15 day time limit given by Vala to Yeddyurappa to prove majority, into just 3 days, and also mandated that the house proceeding including vote should be telecast live. Yeddyurappa resigned after the house convened, citing that he could not muster the majority. Kumaraswamy of Janata Dal was invited to become the new Chief Minister. However, 14 months later, Kumaraswamy's government collapsed. Later Yeddyurappa easily managed to sail through with 106 BJP MLAs.