Rajdeep Deka
Rajdeep Deka | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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राजदीप डेका ৰাজদ্বীপ ডেকা | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() Rajdeep Deka, pictured 2022 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Governor of Kamrupa | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Assumed office 17 March 2023 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Monarch | Dhrubajyoti Roy | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Rajpramukh | Anirban Phatowali | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Prime Minister | Farhaz Hazarika | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Preceded by | Position re-created | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
In office 15 June 2019 – 4 September 2019 (as Governor of Kamrup Pradesh) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
President | Dhrubajyoti Roy | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Prime Minister | Tanishkaa Patranabish | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Vice President | Anoushkaa Patranabish | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Preceded by | Position created | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Succeeded by | Sampriti Paul | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Coordinating Minister of Human Resource, Culture and Youth Affairs | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
In office 17 June 2020 – 28 January 2021 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Monarch | Tanishkaa Patranabish Dhrubajyoti Roy | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Prime Minister | Princess Anoushkaa | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Preceded by | Ministry established | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Succeeded by | Ministry abolished | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Minister of National Development | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
In office 3 March 2020 – 22 March 2020 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
President | Dhrubajyoti Roy | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Prime Minister | Anoushkaa Patranabish | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Preceded by | Anirban Phatowali | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Succeeded by | Anirban Phatowali | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
In office 9 June 2020 – 17 June 2020 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Monarch | Tanishkaa Patranabish | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Prime Minister | Princess Anoushkaa | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Preceded by | Anirban Phatowali | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Succeeded by | Arnab Deka | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Personal details | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Born | Rajdeep Deka 12 December 2002 ![]() | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Citizenship | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Nationality | Indian | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Political party | National People's Congress | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Other political affiliations |
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Occupation | Politician | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Religion | Hindu | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Ethnicity | Assamese | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Awards | See list | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
His Excellency Tan Sri Dato Paduka Rajdeep Deka, SUVB, SUBB, SURK, DPUU, DPRD, DPMM, SPDS, RSP, CSP (Hindi: राजदीप डेका, Assamese: ৰাজদ্বীপ ডেকা) is a Vishwamitran politician and a former union minister having held various portfolios under various prime ministers from time to time. Apart from serving at the union cabinet, he also been the governor of several states. Deka was a classmate of Rashtradhyaksh Dhrubajyoti Roy and Uparashtradhyaksh Bishnu Chetry. He is currently serving as the Governor of Kamrupa since 17 March 2023.
Micronational career
Early political career
Rajdeep Deka joined micronationalism at the persuade of his classmates- Dhrubajyoti Roy and Bishnu Chetry in early 2016 and attained citizenship in then Children's Group. He began his political career in April 2016 after being elected as a member of the Lok Sabha sponsored by the Friends Society Secular Party.
Ministerial career (2016-2017)
He was inducted to the union council of ministers of prime minister Dhrubajyoti Roy formed on 11 April 2016 as the Minister of Sports given his athletic career. In a cabinet reshuffle which took place on 10 July 2016, Deka lost his cabinet rank and was demoted to the rank of a state minister with independent charge. Despite of his demotion, he continued as the minister of sports which was then renamed as that of the minister of sports and youth affairs.
He was re-elected to the Lok Sabha in December 2016 but joined the Friends Society Independent Party. Since the Secular Party and Independent Party were in an alliance, he was appointed to the council of ministers. In the new ministry, he was appointed as the Minister of State for Home Affairs and Corporate Affairs; and did not retain the independent charge. In February 2017 when then Law and Justice minister Anirban Phatowali was promoted to cabinet rank and appointed as the Minister of Sanitation and Cleanliness Campaign, Rajdeep Deka was appointed as the Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Law and Justice and remained in office until the resignation of prime minister Dhrubajyoti Roy on 12 April 2017.
Governorship (2017-2019)
Deka failed to secure a ministerial berth after his party came to power under the leadership of its president Sarala Baishya on 12 April 2017 who succeeded Dhrubajyoti Roy as the premier. Instead, he was appointed as the Governor of Greater Guwahati in order to succeed Arnab Sil who was inducted to the union council of ministers as Deputy Prime Minister. As the governor of the largest and most populous state, he often exerted immense influence on the federal politics and was seen as an influential figure despite being on a largely ceremonial and titular position.
On 7 May 2017, then union government passed the Beltola State Organization Bill, 2017 creating the new province of Basistha by separating the five constituencies of the state of Beltola. Rajdeep Deka, then serving as the Governor of Greater Guwahati was transferred as appointed as the inaugural Governor of Basistha. He was succeeded in Greater Guwahati, which was renamed as Brihattar Guwahati, by former President Anoushkaa Patranabish. Deka's transfer as the governor of the newest state was seen as an unpleasant move and had largely upset him since the new state lacked infrastructural development and administration. However, the main reasons to transfer him from the largest and most populous state to a newly created state was his role to interfere in the politics.
Soon after the unity government of Prime Minister Tanishkaa Patranabish took over on 5 July 2017, he was transferred as the Governor of Madhya Guwahati succeeding Reshmi Hazarika who was further transferred and appointed as the Governor of Beltola. Soon after his transfer to Madhya Guwahati, Basistha was put under the administration of a lieutenant governor. He continued as the Governor of Madhya Guwahati until the expiration of his tenure on 28 April 2018. He also briefly acted as the Governor of Uttar Guwahati in September 2017 after the resignation of then governor Kalyan Dey.
After the expiration of his tenure as governor, Rajdeep Deka maintained a largely apolitical life until being re-appointed to serve as the governor of several states in 2019. He returned to the political scene after being appointed as the Governor of Madhya Guwahati for a second term on 4 February 2019 succeeding Himprakash Deka who had retired from office. He remained as the Governor of Madhya Guwahati until 15 June 2019 when he was transferred and appointed as the Governor of Kamrup Pradesh. Kamrup Pradesh which was a special administrative territory since March was recently granted statehood. This marked the second such event when Rajdeep Deka was transferred and appointed as the inaugural governor of a newly created state. He remained the Governor of Kamrup Pradesh until being re-transferred to serve as the Governor of Purvanchal for a second term. He was given the additional charge of Purvanchal on 1 September 2019 and appointed for a permanent term on 4 September 2019.
His tenure as the Governor of Purvanchal was marked with several controversies. As the governor, he imposed President's rule in the state on 25 October 2019 after the resignation of then Chief Minister Manoj Chetry and assumed full authority of the state. The president's rule was revoked three days later with the appointment of Himprakash Deka as the Chief Minister. On a second occasion, he presided over the Council of Governors as the senior-most governor after the Supreme Court's historic verdict disqualifying all sitting chief ministers of their membership in the parliament.
He remained as the Governor of Purvanchal until resignation from the position on 9 December 2019. He was succeeded as the governor by Asmi Patranabis.
Ministerial career (2019-2021)
Upon resigning as the Governor of Purvanchal on the persuade of President Dhrubajyoti Roy, he attained the membership of the ruling Friends Societal Congress and was immediately inducted into the union council of ministers. He was appointed as the Minister of Human Resource Development and Communications and Technology on 9 December 2019. Four days later, following violent incidents in several parts of the nation in conjunction with the Citizenship Amendment Act protests in parts of the city of Guwahati, he was appointed as the Minister of National Security and Strategic Planning on 12 December 2019 and continued to serve until the dissolution of the council of ministers on 3 March 2020. As the Minister of National Security, he presided over the National Security Council along with the President during the period of crisis ensuring the safety and security of the citizens.
In the caretaker ministry of Prime Minister Anoushkaa Patranabish, he was appointed as the Minister of National Development on 3 March 2020. However, in a reshuffle on 9 March 2020, he was appointed as the Minister of Commonwealth Affairs and Minister in-charge of Protocol, Elections and General Administration. Despite being elected to the 12th Lok Sabha, he was not inducted to the union council of ministers. In the presidential cabinet of Tanishkaa Patranabish which was formed on 3 May 2020, he was appointed as the Minister of Planning and Public Administration and Minister of Personnel and Administrative Reforms.
On 8 June 2020, Vishwamitra became a monarchy and Anoushkaa Patranabish was appointed as the Prime Minister. In the cabinet formed, Deka was appointed as the Minister of National Development. On 17 June 2020, in a cabinet reshuffle, he was appointed as the Coordinating Minister of Human Resource, Culture and Youth and continued to serve until the dissolution of the council of ministers on 28 January 2021. As a minister, he was also appointed to the Privy Council of Vishwamitra and served as its member between 1 July and 29 July 2020.
He has not been active in the politics since January 2021 but has continued to be a close confidante of Rashtradhyaksh Dhrubajyoti Roy and maintained a close personal relations with the Rashtradhyaksh and Uparashtradhyaksh Bishnu Chetry.
Governorship (2023-present)
After maintaining a low profile for more than two years, he returned to limelight in September 2022 following a meeting with Rashtradhyaksh Dhrubajyoti Roy and Uparashtradhyaksh Bishnu Chetry. Following the passing of the Governorship Act, 2023, he was appointed as the Governor of Kamrupa on 17 March 2023.
Honours
Honours of Vishwamitra
Friends Society:
Recipient of the Medal "For Services to National Leader II" (30 April 2020)
Recipient of the Investiture Medal of National Leader III (3 May 2020)
Vishwamitra:
Grand Cordon of the Most Excellent Royal Vishwamitran Order of Merit (SUVB) – Tan Sri (15 April 2023)
Recipient 2nd Class of the Distinguished and Long Service Medal (SPDS, 15 April 2023)
Recipient of the National Service Medal (PRS, 15 April 2023)
Recipient of the Civil Service Medal (CSP, 15 April 2023)
Recipient of the Commemorative Medal of the Crystal Jubilee of the Foundation of Vishwamitra (15 April 2022)
Recipient of the Commemorative Medal of the 21st Birthday of Rashtradhyaksh Dhrubajyoti Roy (11 January 2023)
- Former honours
Companion of the Most Distinguished Order of Loyalty to the Royal Family of Vishwamitra (29 September – 24 October 2022) (order abolished)
Basistha:
Grand Companion of the Most Excellent Order of Merit of Basistha (SUBB) – Dato Sri (27 January 2023)
Kamrupa:
Knight Grand Cross of the Most Excellent Order of the State of Kamrupa (SURK) – Dato Paduka (1 April 2023)
Madhya Prant:
Companion of the Most Blessed Order of the Crown of Madhya Prant (DPMM) (7 March 2023)
Purvanchal:
Companion of the Most Distinguished Order of the Rajpramukh Dhrubajyoti Roy (DPRD) (2 January 2023)
Uttaranchal:
Grand Commander of the Most Honourable Order of Uttaranchal (DPUU) (4 May 2023)
Order of wear
Ribbon bars and badges of the orders and decorations that are worn by Tan Sri Dato Paduka Rajdeep Deka, the Governor of Kamrupa are noted in accordance with customary Vishwamitran conventions applicable to the occasion, the location and to the form of dress worn. The ribbon bars are worn according to the protocol and the precedence of the wear as issued by the Chancellery of the orders. It is to note that the ribbons of the foreign honours are worn below the national and state honours of Vishwamitra. The badges of the foreign decorations are not worn regularly except for special occasions.