List of governors of Tamil Nadu

Last updated

Governor of Tamil Nadu
Tamiḻnāṭu Āḷunar
TamilNadu Logo.svg
R.N. Ravi.jpg
Incumbent
R. N. Ravi
since 18 September 2021
Style His Excellency
Status Head of State
Reports to President of India
Government of India
Residence
Appointer President of India
Term length Five years
Renewable
Inaugural holder Archibald Edward Nye
(1946–1948)
Formation6 May 1946;77 years ago (1946-05-06)
Salary350,000 (US$4,400) (per month)
Website www.tnrajbhavan.gov.in
The state of Tamil Nadu in India has had 26 Governors since 1946 IN-TN.svg
The state of Tamil Nadu in India has had 26 Governors since 1946

The governor of Tamil Nadu is the head of state of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Governors in India have similar powers and functions at the state level as those of the president of India at the central level. They exist in the state appointed by the president of India for a term of five years and they are not local to the state that they are appointed to govern. The factors based on which the president evaluates the candidates is not mentioned in the constitution. The governor acts as the nominal head whereas the real power lies with the chief minister of the state and their council of ministers.

Contents

The current incumbent is R. N. Ravi, who has served since 18 September 2021.

Powers and functions

The governor enjoys many different types of powers:

Governors

Madras Presidency and Madras State

Headquartered in Fort St. George, Madras Presidency was a province of British India. It comprised present-day Tamil Nadu, the Malabar region of North Kerala, the coastal and Rayalaseema regions of Andhra Pradesh, and the Bellary, Dakshina Kannada, and Udupi districts of Karnataka. It was established in 1653 to be the headquarters of the English settlements on the Coromandel Coast. After India's independence in 1947, Madras State, the precursor to the present day state of Tamil Nadu, was carved out of Madras Presidency. It comprised present-day Tamil Nadu and parts of present-day Karnataka and Kerala. [1]

Tabular

#NameTook officeLeft officeTerm [nb 1]
1 William Thomas Denison 18 February 186126 November 1863
2Edward Maltby (acting)26 November 186318 January 1864
3 William Thomas Denison 18 January 186427 March 1866
4 Lord Napier 27 March 186619 February 1872
5 Alexander John Arbuthnot (acting)19 February 187215 May 1872
6 Lord Hobart 15 May 187229 April 1875
7William Rose Robinson (acting)29 April 187523 November 1875
8 Duke of Buckingham and Chandos 23 November 187520 December 1880
9William Huddleston (acting)24 May 18815 November 1881
10 Mountstuart Elphinstone Grant Duff 5 November 18818 December 1886
11 Robert Bourke, Baron Connemara 8 December 18861 December 1890
12John Henry Garstin1 December 189023 January 1891
13 Bentley Lawley, Baron Wenlock 23 January 189118 March 1896
14 Arthur Elibank Havelock 18 March 189628 December 1900
15 Arthur Oliver Villiers-Russell, Baron Ampthill 28 December 190030 April 1904
16James Thompson (acting)30 April 190413 December 1904
17 Arthur Oliver Villiers-Russell, Baron Ampthill 13 December 190415 February 1906
18Gabriel Stoles (acting)15 February 190628 March 1906
19 Arthur Lawley, Baron Wenlock 28 March 19063 November 1911
20 Thomas David Gibson-Carmichael, Baron Carmichael 3 November 191130 March 1912
21Sir Murray Hammick (acting)30 March 191230 October 1912
22 John Sinclair, Baron Pentland 30 October 191229 March 1919
23 Sir Alexander Gordon Cardew 29 March 191910 April 1919
24 George Freeman Freeman-Thomas, Baron Willingdon 10 April 191912 April 1924
25 Sir P. Rajagopalachari 19201923
26 Lieutenant-General Sir Archibald Edward Nye [2] 6 May 19467 September 19481
27 Maharaja Sir Krishna Kumarasinhji Bhavsinhji 7 September 194812 March 19521
28 Sri Prakasa 12 March 195210 December 19561
29 A. J. John 10 December 195630 September 19571
- Pakala Venkata Rajamannar (acting)1 October 195724 January 19581
30 Bhishnuram Medhi 24 January 19584 May 19641
31 Maharaja Sir Jayachamaraja Wodeyar Bahadur 4 May 196424 November 19641
- P. Chandra Reddy (acting) [3] 24 November 19647 December 19651
(31) Maharaja Sir Jayachamaraja Wodeyar Bahadur [nb 2] 7 December 196528 June 19661
32 Sardar Ujjal Singh (acting till 16 June 1967)28 June 196614 January 19691

Graphical

Sardar Ujjal SinghMaharaja Jayachamaraja Wodeyar Bahadur of MysoreP. Chandra ReddyMaharaja Jayachamaraja Wodeyar Bahadur of MysoreBhishnuram MedhiDr. Pakala Venkata RajamannarA. J. John, AnaparambilSri PrakasaMaharaja Krishna Kumarasingh BhavasinghSir Archibald Edward NyeList of governors of Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu

Madras State was renamed as Tamil Nadu (Tamil for Tamil country) on 14 January 1969. Governors have similar powers and functions at the state level as that of the President of India at the Central government level. The Governor acts as the nominal head of the state while the Chief Ministers of the states and the Chief Minister's Council of Ministers are invested with most executive powers.

No.PortraitName

(Birth–Death)

Home stateTerm of office [4] Previous postAppointed by
Assumed officeLeft officeTime in office
1 No image available.svg Ujjal Singh
(1895–1983)
Punjab 14 January 196925 May 19712 years, 131 days Governor of Punjab Zakir Hussain
2 No image available.svg K. K. Shah
(1908–1986)
Gujarat 26 May 197115 June 19765 years, 20 days Varahagiri Venkata Giri
3 Mohan Lal Sukhadia 1988 stamp of India.jpg Mohan Lal Sukhadia
(1916–1982)
Rajasthan 16 June 19768 April 1977296 days Governor of United Andhra Pradesh Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed
Acting No image available.svg P. Govindan Nair
(Unknown–Unknown)
Kerala 9 April 197726 April 197717 days B. D. Jatti (Acting President)
4 No image available.svg Prabhudas B. Patwari
(1909–1985)
Gujarat 27 April 197726 October 19803 years, 182 days Indian Lawyer
Acting No image available.svg M. M. Ismail
(1921–2005)
Tamil Nadu 27 October 19803 November 198037 days Chief Justice of Madras High Court Neelam Sanjiva Reddy
5 No image available.svg Sadiq Ali
(1910–2001)
Rajasthan 4 November 19802 September 19821 year, 302 days Governor of Maharashtra
6 No image available.svg S. L. Khurana
(1918–2007)
National Capital Territory of Delhi 3 September 198216 February 19885 years, 166 days Lieutenant Governor of Puducherry Giani Zail Singh
7 No image available.svg P. C. Alexander
(1921–2011)
Kerala 17 February 198823 May 19902 years, 95 days I.A.S. Officer R. Venkataraman
8 The Vice President, Shri Mohd. Hamid Ansari with the Governor of Tamil Nadu, Shri Surjit Singh Barnala and the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, Dr. Kalaignar M. Karunanidhi (cropped) (Surjit Singh Barnala).png Surjit Singh Barnala
(1925–2017)
Haryana 24 May 199014 February 1991266 days Chief Minister of Punjab
9 BhishmaNarainSingh19.jpg Bhishma Narain Singh
(1933–2018)
Rajasthan 15 February 199130 May 19932 years, 104 days Governor of Assam
10 DrMChannaReddy (cropped).jpg M. Channa Reddy
(1919–1996)
Andhra Pradesh 31 May 19932 December 1996 [†] 3 years, 185 days Governor of Rajasthan Shanker Dayal Sharma
Krishan Kant 2005 stamp of India.jpg Krishan Kant
(1927–2002)
Punjab 2 December 199624 January 199753 days Governor of Andhra Pradesh
11 Justice Fathima Beevi.JPG M. Fathima Beevi
(1927–2023)
Kerala 25 January 19972 July 20014 years, 158 daysJudge of the Supreme Court of India
The Chairman, Economic Advisory Council to PM, Dr. C. Rangarajan addressing a Press Conference on Review of Economy 2009-10, in New Delhi on February 19, 2010 (4).jpg C. Rangarajan
(1932-)
Tamil Nadu 3 July 200117 January 2002198 days Governor of the Reserve Bank of India K. R. Narayanan
12 XRecorder 27122022 100541.jpg P. S. Ramamohan Rao
(1934-)
Andhra Pradesh 18 January 20022 November 20042 years, 289 days Director General of Andhra Pradesh Police A. P. J. Abdul Kalam
(8) The Vice President, Shri Mohd. Hamid Ansari with the Governor of Tamil Nadu, Shri Surjit Singh Barnala and the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, Dr. Kalaignar M. Karunanidhi (cropped) (Surjit Singh Barnala).png Surjit Singh Barnala
(1925–2017)
Haryana 3 November 200430 August 20116 years, 300 days Governor of Andhra Pradesh
13 Konijeti Rosaiah BNC.jpg Konijeti Rosaiah
(1933–2021)
Andhra Pradesh 31 August 20111 September 20165 years, 1 day Chief minister of Andhra Pradesh Pratibha Devisingh Patil
Vidhyasagar Rao.jpg C. Vidyasagar Rao
(1942–)
Andhra Pradesh 2 September 20165 October 20171 year, 33 days Governor of Maharashtra Pranab Mukherjee
14 Banwarilal Purohit.jpg Banwarilal Purohit
(1939–)
Rajasthan 6 October 201717 September 20213 years, 346 days Governor of Assam Ram Nath Kovind
15 R.N. Ravi.jpg R. N. Ravi
(1952–)
Bihar 18 September 2021Incumbent2 years, 122 days Governor of Nagaland
Graphical
R. N. RaviBanwarilal PurohitC. Vidyasagar RaoKonijeti RosaiahSurjit Singh BarnalaP. S. Ramamohan RaoC. RangarajanM. Fathima BeeviKrishan KantMarri Chenna ReddyBhishma Narain SinghSurjit Singh BarnalaP. C. AlexanderSundar Lal KhuranaSadiq AliM. M. IsmailPrabhudas PatwariP. Govindan NairMohan Lal SukhadiaKodardas Kalidas ShahSardar Ujjal SinghList of governors of Tamil Nadu

Records

See also

Notes

  1. The ordinal number of the term being served by the person specified in the row in the corresponding period
  2. This term is a continuation of the Jayachamaraja Wodeyar Bahadur's first term. P. Chandra Reddy served as the acting Governor while Jayachamaraja Wodeyar Bahadur was on foreign tours.

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References

  1. Tamil Nadu Secretariat Brief History Archived 2007-01-06 at archive.today (Government of Tamil Nadu, 17 September 2008)
  2. [Formerly the last Governor of the Madras Presidency.]
  3. HON'BLE SRI JUSTICE P.CHANDRA REDDI Archived 2008-09-30 at the Wayback Machine (High Court of Andhra Pradesh, Hyderabad, 20 September 2008)
  4. The ordinal number of the term being served by the person specified in the row in the corresponding period