Uikghh at 19:19, 8 June 2026

2026-06-08T19:19:29Z

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{{Short description|List of Kerala governors}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2019}}
{{Use Indian English|date=August 2019}}
{{Infobox official post
| image = Rajendra Arlekar.jpg
| imagesize =
| post = Governor of Kerala
| insignia = Government of Kerala Logo.svg
| insigniasize = 120px
| insigniacaption = [[Emblem of Kerala]]
| incumbent = [[Rajendra Arlekar|Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar]]
| incumbentsince = {{Start date|df=yes|2025|1|2}}
| style = [[The Honourable]], [[His Excellency]]
| residence = [[Raj Bhavan (Kerala)|Lok Bhavan, Kerala, Thiruvananthapuram]]
| termlength = [[At His Majesty's pleasure#Derivatives|At the pleasure of the president]]
| formation = {{start date and years ago|df=yes|1956|11|1}}
| appointer = [[President of India]]
| website = {{URL|http://www.rajbhavan.kerala.gov.in/}}
| body =
}}
The '''governor of Kerala''' is the constitutional head of state of the southern Indian state of [[Kerala]]. The governor is appointed by the [[president of India]], and holds office at the president's pleasure. The governor is ''[[de jure]]'' head of the [[government of Kerala]]; all its executive actions are taken in the governor's name. The elected council of ministers is headed by the [[chief minister of Kerala]], who thus holds ''[[de facto]]'' executive authority in the state. The [[Constitution of India]] also empowers the governor to act upon their own discretion, such as the ability to appoint or dismiss a [[ministry (collective executive)|ministry]], recommend [[President's rule]], or reserve bills for the president's assent.<ref>[[Durga Das Basu]]. ''Introduction to the Constitution of India''. 1960. 20th edition, 2011 reprint. LexisNexis Butterworths Wadhwa Nagpur. {{ISBN|978-81-8038-559-9}}. p. 237, 241–44. Note: although the text talks about Indian state governments in general, it applies for the specific case of Kerala as well.</ref>

Since 2 January 2025, [[Rajendra Arlekar|Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar]], is the 28th governor of Kerala.

==List==

;Legend
*{{note label|†|†|†}} Died in office
*{{note label|§|§|§}} Transferred
*{{note label|‡|‡|‡}} Resigned/removed

;Color key
*{{legend2|wheat}} indicates acting/additional charge

{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center; border:1px #aaf solid;"
! rowspan="2"| {{abbr|#|Number}}
! rowspan="2" class="unsortable"| Portrait
! rowspan="2" style="width:14em" | Name (born{{spaced ndash}}died)
! rowspan="2" style="width:7em" | Home state
! colspan="3"| Tenure in office
! rowspan="2" style="width:7em" | Appointer (President)
|-
! style="width:7em"| From
! style="width:7em"| To
! style="width:5em"| Time in office
|-
! 1
| bgcolor="wheat"|[[File:P. S. Rao (cropped).jpg|70px]]
| bgcolor="wheat"|'''P. S. Rao''' (Acting)
| bgcolor="wheat"|[[Andhra Pradesh]]
| bgcolor="wheat"|{{small|1 November}} 1956
| bgcolor="wheat"|{{small|21 November}} 1956
| bgcolor="wheat"|'''{{ayd|1 Nov 1956|21 Nov 1956}}'''
| rowspan="3"| [[Rajendra Prasad]]
|-
! 2
| [[File:Burgula Ramakrishna Rao, 1952 (cropped).jpg|70px]]
| '''[[Burgula Ramakrishna Rao]]''' {{small|(1899{{ndash}}1967)}}
| [[Andhra Pradesh]]
| {{small|22 November}} 1956
| {{small|1 July}} 1960{{ref label|§|§|§}}{{efn-lg|Transferred as the [[Governor of Uttar Pradesh]]}}
| '''{{ayd|22 Nov 1956|1 Jul 1960}}'''
|-
! 3
| [[File:President V. V. Giri.jpg|70px]]
| '''[[V. V. Giri]]''' {{small|(1894{{ndash}}1980)}}
| [[Madras Presidency]]
| {{small|1 July}} 1960
| {{small|2 April}} 1965{{ref label|§|§|§}}{{efn-lg|Transferred as the [[Governor of Tamil Nadu|Governor of Mysore State]]}}
| '''{{ayd|1 Jul 1960|2 Apr 1965}}'''
|-
! 4
| [[File:Ajit Prasad Jain Lok Sabha portrait.gif|70px]]
| '''[[Ajit Prasad Jain]]''' {{small|(1902{{ndash}}1977)}}
| [[Uttar Pradesh]]
| {{small|2 April}} 1965
| {{small|6 February}} 1966{{ref label|‡|‡|‡}}
| '''{{ayd|2 Apr 1965|6 Feb 1966}}'''
| rowspan="2"| [[Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan]]
|-
! 5
| [[File:Bhagwan Sahay.jpg|70px]]
| '''[[Bhagwan Sahay]]''' {{small|[[Indian Civil Service|ICS]] (Retd) (1905{{ndash}}1986)}}
| [[Uttar Pradesh]]
| {{small|6 February}} 1966
| {{small|15 May}} 1967{{ref label|§|§|§}}{{efn-lg|Transferred as the [[Governor of Jammu and Kashmir]]}}
| '''{{ayd|6 Feb 1966|15 May 1967}}'''
|-
! 6
| [[File:V. Viswanathan.jpg|70px]]
| '''[[V. Viswanathan]]''' {{small|[[Indian Civil Service|ICS]] (Retd) (1909{{ndash}}1987)}}
| [[Kerala]]
| {{small|15 May}} 1967
| {{small|1 April}} 1973
| '''{{ayd|15 May 1967|1 Apr 1973}}'''
| [[Zakir Husain]]
|-
! 6
| [[File:N. N. Wanchoo.jpg|70px]]
| '''[[N. N. Wanchoo]]''' {{small|[[Indian Civil Service|ICS]] (Retd) (1910{{ndash}}1982)}}
| [[Madhya Pradesh]]
| {{small|1 April}} 1973
| {{small|10 October}} 1977{{ref label|§|§|§}}{{efn-lg|Transferred as the [[Governor of Madhya Pradesh]]}}
| '''{{ayd|1 Apr 1973|10 Oct 1977}}'''
| [[V. V. Giri]]
|-
! 7
| [[File:Jothi Venkatachalam.jpg|70px]]
| '''[[Jothi Venkatachalam]]''' {{small|(1917{{ndash}}1992)}}
| [[Tamil Nadu]]
| {{small|14 October}} 1977
| {{small|27 October}} 1982
| '''{{ayd|14 Oct 1977|27 Oct 1982}}'''
| [[Neelam Sanjiva Reddy]]
|-
! 8
| [[File:P. Ramachandran.jpg|70px]]
| '''[[P. Ramachandran]]''' {{small|(1921{{ndash}}2001)}}
| [[Tamil Nadu]]
| {{small|27 October}} 1982
| {{small|23 February}} 1988
| '''{{ayd|27 Oct 1982|23 Feb 1988}}'''
| [[Zail Singh]]
|-
! 9
| [[File:Ram Dulari Sinha official portrait.gif|70px]]
| '''[[Ram Dulari Sinha]]''' {{small|(1922{{ndash}}1994)}}
| [[Bihar]]
| {{small|23 February}} 1988
| {{small|12 February}} 1990{{ref label|‡|‡|‡}}
| '''{{ayd|23 Feb 1988|12 Feb 1990}}'''
| rowspan="3"| [[Ramaswamy Venkataraman]]
|-
! 10
| [[File:Sarup Singh Rajya Sabha photo.jpg|70px]]
| '''[[Sarup Singh]]''' {{small|(1917{{ndash}}2003)}}
| [[Haryana]]
| {{small|12 February}} 1990
| {{small|20 December}} 1990{{ref label|§|§|§}}{{efn-lg|Transferred as the [[Governor of Gujarat]]}}
| '''{{ayd|12 Feb 1990|20 Dec 1990}}'''
|-
! 11
| [[File:B. Rachaiah Lok Sabha photo.jpg|70px]]
| '''[[B. Rachaiah]]''' {{small|(1922{{ndash}}2000)}}
| [[Karnataka]]
| {{small|20 December}} 1990
| {{small|15 April}} 1995
| '''{{ayd|20 Dec 1990|15 Apr 1995}}'''
|-
! 12
| bgcolor="wheat"| [[File:Gopala Ramanujam.jpg|70px]]
| bgcolor="wheat"| '''[[Gopala Ramanujam]]''' {{small|(1915{{ndash}}2001) Governor of Orissa}} (Acting)
| bgcolor="wheat"| [[Tamil Nadu]]
| bgcolor="wheat"| {{small|15 April}} 1995
| bgcolor="wheat"| {{small|30 April}} 1995
| bgcolor="wheat"| '''{{ayd|15 Apr 1995|30 Apr 1995}}'''
| rowspan="5"| [[Shankar Dayal Sharma]]
|-
! 13
| [[File:B. Rachaiah Lok Sabha photo.jpg|70px]]
| '''[[B. Rachaiah]]''' {{small|(1922{{ndash}}2000)}}
| [[Karnataka]]
| {{small|1 May}} 1995
| {{small|11 November}} 1995
| '''{{ayd|1 May 1995|11 Nov 1995}}'''
|-
! 14
| [[File:P. Shiv Shankar (cropped).jpg|70px]]
| '''[[P. Shiv Shankar]]''' {{small|(1929{{ndash}}2017)}}
| [[Andhra Pradesh]]
| {{small|12 November}} 1995
| {{small|4 May}} 1996{{ref label|‡|‡|‡}}
| '''{{ayd|12 Nov 1995|1 May 1996}}'''
|- bgcolor="wheat"
! 15
| [[File:Khurshed Alam Khan (cropped).jpg|70px]]
| '''[[Khurshed Alam Khan]]''' {{small|(1919{{ndash}}2013) Governor of Karnataka}} (Additional Charge)
| [[Uttar Pradesh]]
| {{small|5 May}} 1996
| {{small|25 January}} 1997
| '''{{ayd|5 May 1996|25 Jan 1997}}'''
|-
! 16
| [[File:Justice Sukhdev Singh Kang.jpg|70px]]
| {{small|Justice (Retd)}} '''[[Sukhdev Singh Kang]]''' {{small|(1931{{ndash}}2012)}}
| [[Punjab, India|Punjab]]
| {{small|25 January}} 1997
| {{small|18 April }} 2002
| '''{{ayd|25 Jan 1997|18 April 2002}}'''
|-
! 17
| [[File:Sikander Bakht Lok Sabha photo.jpg|70px]]
| '''[[Sikander Bakht]]''' {{small|(1918{{ndash}}2004)}}
| [[National Capital Territory of Delhi]]
| {{small|18 April}} 2002
| {{small|23 February}} 2004{{ref label|†|†|†}}
| '''{{ayd|18 Apr 2002|23 Feb 2004}}'''
|[[K. R. Narayanan]]
|-
! 18
| bgcolor="wheat" | [[File:T. N. Chaturvedi.jpg|70px]]
| bgcolor="wheat" | '''[[T. N. Chaturvedi]]''' {{small|[[Indian Administrative Service|IAS]] (Retd) (1928{{ndash}}2020) Governor of Karnataka}} (Additional Charge)
| bgcolor="wheat" | [[Uttar Pradesh]]
| bgcolor="wheat" | {{small|25 February}} 2004
| bgcolor="wheat" | {{small|23 June}} 2004
| bgcolor="wheat" | '''{{ayd|25 Feb 2004|23 Jun 2004}}'''
| rowspan="2" | [[A. P. J. Abdul Kalam]]
|-
! 19
| [[File:R. L. Bhatia.jpg|70px]]
| '''[[R. L. Bhatia]]''' {{small|(1920{{ndash}}2021)}}
| [[Punjab, India|Punjab]]
| {{small|23 June}} 2004
| {{small|10 July}} 2008{{ref label|§|§|§}}{{efn-lg|name=BR|Transferred as the [[Governor of Bihar]]}}
| '''{{ayd|23 Jun 2004|10 Jul 2008}}'''
|-
! 20
| [[File:R. S. Gavai.jpg|70px]]
| '''[[R. S. Gavai]]''' {{small|(1929{{ndash}}2015)}}
| [[Maharashtra]]
| {{small|11 July}} 2008
| {{small|7 September}} 2011
| '''{{ayd|11 Jul 2008|7 Sep 2011}}'''
| rowspan="3" | [[Pratibha Patil]]
|-
! 21
| [[File:M. O. H. Farook.jpg|70px]]
| '''[[M. O. H. Farook]]''' {{small|(1937{{ndash}}2012)}}
| [[Puducherry (union territory)|Puducherry]]
| {{small|8 September}} 2011
| {{small|26 January}} 2012{{ref label|†|†|†}}
| '''{{ayd|8 Sep 2011|26 Jan 2012}}'''
|- bgcolor="wheat"
! 22
| [[File:Hans Raj Bhardwaj.png|70px]]
| '''[[H. R. Bhardwaj]]''' {{small|(1939{{ndash}}2020) Governor of Karnataka}} (Additional Charge)
| [[Punjab, India|Punjab]]
| {{small|26 January}} 2012
| {{small|22 March}} 2013
| '''{{ayd|26 Jan 2012|22 Mar 2013}}'''
|-
! 23
| [[File:Nikhil Kumar Nagaland Governor (cropped).jpg|70px]]
| '''[[Nikhil Kumar (governor)|Nikhil Kumar]]''' {{small|[[Indian Police Service|IPS]] (Retd) (born 1941)}}
| [[Bihar]]
| {{small|23 March}} 2013
| {{small|5 March}} 2014{{ref label|‡|‡|‡}}{{efn-lg|Resigned to contest in the [[2014 Indian general election|2014 general election]]}}
| '''{{ayd|23 Mar 2013|5 Mar 2014}}'''
| rowspan="3" | [[Pranab Mukherjee]]
|-
! 24
| [[File:Sheila Dikshit Ji.jpg|70px]]
| '''[[Sheila Dikshit]]''' {{small|(1938{{ndash}}2019)}}
| [[National Capital Territory of Delhi]]
| {{small|5 March}} 2014
| {{small|5 September}} 2014{{ref label|‡|‡|‡}}
| '''{{ayd|5 Mar 2014|5 Sep 2014}}'''
|-
! 25
| [[File:Justice P. Sathasivam.jpg|70px]]
| {{small|Justice (Retd)}} '''[[P. Sathasivam]]''' {{small|(born 1949)}}
| [[Tamil Nadu]]
| {{small|5 September}} 2014
| {{small|5 September}} 2019
| '''{{ayd|5 Sep 2014|5 Sep 2019}}'''
|-
! 26
| [[File:Governor Arif Mohammad Khan.jpg|86x86px]]
| '''[[Arif Mohammad Khan]]''' {{small|(born 1951)}}
| [[Uttar Pradesh]]
| {{small|6 September}} 2019
| {{small|1 January}} 2025{{ref label|§|§|§}}{{efn-lg|name=BR}}
| '''{{ayd|6 Sep 2019|1 Jan 2025}}'''
| [[Ram Nath Kovind]]
|-
! 27
| [[File:Rajendra Arlekar.jpg|80x80px]]
| '''[[Rajendra Arlekar]]''' {{small|(born 1954)}}
| [[Goa]]
| {{small|2 January}} 2025
| Incumbent
| '''{{ayd|2 Jan 2025}}'''
| [[Droupadi Murmu]]
|-
|}

{{reflist|group=lower-greek}}

==See also==
* [[Kerala]]
* [[Governors of India]]
* [[Chief Minister of Kerala]]

==External links==
* [http://niyamasabha.org/codes/ginfo_4.htm Governors of Kerala]

== Oath ==
“I, A. B., do swear in the name of God/solemly affirm that I will faithfully
execute the office of Governor (or discharge the functions
of the Governor) of .............(name of the State) and will to
the best of my ability preserve, protect and defend the
Constitution and the law and that I will devote myself to
the service and well-being of the people of ..………(name
of the State).”

==References==
{{reflist}}

{{Governors_and_Lt_Governors_of_Indian_States}}
{{Kerala topics}}

[[Category:Governors of Kerala]]
[[Category:Lists of governors of Indian states|Kerala]]
[[Category:Lists of people from Kerala|Governors]]
[[Category:Kerala politics-related lists|Governors]]

List of governors of Kerala - Revision history

Uikghh at 19:19, 8 June 2026