Ram Nath Kovind resigns as Bihar Governor, West Bengal Gov KN Tripathi gets additional charge

West Bengal Governor Keshri Nath Tripathi on Tuesday got additional charge of Bihar after Ram Nath Kovind, BJP's pick for President, resigned from his post.

President Pranab Mukherjee has accepted the resignation of Kovind as the Governor of Bihar, a communique issued by the Rashtrapati Bhavan said.

The BJP on Monday announced the name of the 71-year-old Kovind, a low-profile Dalit leader and a two-term BJP Rajya Sabha member, as its choice for President.

Kovind said he will meet leaders of major political parties and seek their support to emerge as a 'consensus candidate' for the coveted post.

He also met Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP chief Amit Shah after he arrived in the national capital from Patna.

Non-NDA parties like BJD, TRS and YSRCP have announced their support to the Dalit leader. Kovind is likely to file his nomination on June 23.

If elected, which appears to be a certainty, the former lawyer would be only the second Dalit to occupy the Rashtrapati Bhavan after K R Narayanan.