List of governors of Tamil Nadu
The Governor of Tamil Nadu is the constitutional head of the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Like all states, the governor is a nominal head and representative of the President of India. The governor is appointed by the president for a five-year term. This list includes both nominated and acting heads of state in the history of the state of Tamil Nadu in India since 1946. The area under the present-day state of Tamil Nadu has been part of different territorial configurations under Madras Presidency and Madras State in its history.[1]
The current governor is K. Rosaiah, the former Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh, who took office on 31 August 2011.[2]
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 Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Kerala.[3]
- Tabular
| # | Name | Took Office | Left Office | Term[nb 1] |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lieutenant-General Sir Archibald Edward Nye[4] | 6 May 1946 | 7 September 1948 | 1 |
| 2 | Maharaja Sir Krishna Kumarasinhji Bhavsinhji | 7 September 1948 | 12 March 1952 | 1 |
| 3 | Sri Prakasa | 12 March 1952 | 10 December 1956 | 1 |
| 4 | A. J. John, Anaparambil | 10 December 1956 | 30 September 1957 | 1 |
| 5 | Pakala Venkata Rajamannar (acting) | 1 October 1957 | 24 January 1958 | 1 |
| 6 | Bhishnuram Medhi | 24 January 1958 | 4 May 1964 | 1 |
| 7 | Maharaja Sir Jayachamaraja Wodeyar Bahadur | 4 May 1964 | 24 November 1964 | 1 |
| 8 | P. Chandra Reddy (acting)[5] | 24 November 1964 | 7 December 1965 | 1 |
| 9 | Maharaja Sir Jayachamaraja Wodeyar Bahadur[nb 2] | 7 December 1965 | 28 June 1966 | 1 |
| 10 | Sardar Ujjal Singh (acting till 16 June 1967) | 28 June 1966 | 14 January 1969 | 1 |
- Graphical
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.
- Tabular
| # | Name | Took Office | Left Office | Term[nb 1] | President who appointed the Governor |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sardar Ujjal Singh | 14 January 1969 | 27 May 1971 | 1 | Dr. Zakir Hussain |
| 2 | Kodardas Kalidas Shah | 27 May 1971 | 16 June 1976 | 1 | Varaha Venkata Giri |
| 3 | Mohan Lal Sukhadia | 16 June 1976 | 8 April 1977 | 1 | Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed |
| 4 | Justice P. Govindan Nair (acting)[6] | 9 April 1977 | 27 April 1977 | 1 | |
| 5 | Prabhudas B. Patwari | 27 April 1977 | 27 October 1980 | 1 | Basappa Danappa Jatti |
| 6 | Justice M. M. Ismail (acting) | 27 October 1980 | 4 November 1980 | 1 | |
| 7 | Sadiq Ali | 4 November 1980 | 3 September 1982 | 1 | Neelam Sanjiva Reddy |
| 8 | Sundar Lal Khurana, IAS (Retired) | 3 September 1982 | 17 February 1988 | 1 | Giani Zail Singh |
| 9 | P. C. Alexander, IAS (Retired) | 17 February 1988 | 24 May 1990 | 1 | R. Venkataraman |
| 10 | Sardar Surjit Singh Barnala | 24 May 1990 | 15 February 1991 | 1 | R. Venkataraman |
| 11 | Bhishma Narain Singh | 15 February 1991 | 31 May 1993 | 1 | R. Venkataraman |
| 12 | Marri Chenna Reddy | 31 May 1993 | 2 December 1996 | 1 | Dr. Shankar Dayal Sharma |
| 13 | Krishan Kant (additional charge)[6] | 2 December 1996 | 25 January 1997 | 1 | |
| 14 | Justice M. Fathima Beevi | 25 January 1997 | 3 July 2001 | 1 | Dr. Shankar Dayal Sharma |
| 15 | Dr. C. Rangarajan (additional charge) | 3 July 2001 | 18 January 2002 | 1 | |
| 16 | P. S. Ramamohan Rao, IPS (Retired) | 18 January 2002 | 3 November 2004 | 1 | A. P. J. Abdul Kalam |
| 17 | Sardar Surjit Singh Barnala | 3 November 2004 | 31 August 2011 | 2 | |
| 18 | Konijeti Rosaiah | 31 August 2011 | "Incumbent" | 1 | Pratibha Patil |
- Graphical
Records
- Surjit Singh Barnala is the only appointed Governor to have served two terms in office (24 May 1990–15 February 1991 and 3 November 2004–31 August 2011).
- The longest term in office was that of Surjit Singh Barnala who served as the Governor for a period of almost six and a half years (3 November 2004–31 August 2011).
- The shortest term in office was that of M. M. Ismail who served as the acting Governor for a period of nine days (27 October 1980–4 November 1980).
See also
Notes
- 1 2 The ordinal number of the term being served by the person specified in the row in the corresponding period
- ↑ 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.
References
- ↑ Governors of Tamil Nadu since 1946, (Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly, 15 September 2008)
- ↑ Rosaiah "Rosaiah appointed Tamil Nadu Governor" Check
|url= - ↑ Tamil Nadu Secretariat — Brief History (Government of Tamil Nadu, 17 September 2008)
- ↑ [Formerly the last Governor of the Madras Presidency.]
- ↑ HON'BLE SRI JUSTICE P.CHANDRA REDDI (High Court of Andhra Pradesh, Hyderabad, 20 September 2008)
- 1 2 Past Governors (Raj Bhavan, Chennai, 20 September 2008)