Governor is a constitutional post under Article 153 of our constitution. Governor is head of the state. He is symbolic/nominal head of the state government, whereas Chief Minister is real head of state government. Governor of a state is appointed by President of India. We have borrowed this feature of appointment of state Governor by the centre from the Constitution of Canada. The minimum age to be appointed as Governor of a state is 35 years. Tenure of Governor is 5 years, but not fixed, holds office during the pleasure of President. This means he can be removed by President at any time without assigning any reason. A person can be appointed Governor of more than one state simultaneously. A Governor can be transferred from one state to another by the President at any time. Governor is affirmed oath of office and secrecy by the Chief Justice of the State High Court. Governor can resign by submitting his resignation to the President. Sarojini Naidu was the first woman Governor of a state (U.P State – 1947-1949)
Governor of a state too under Article 161 have pardoning power. He has the power to grant pardons, reprieves, respites or remissions of punishment or to suspend, remit or commute the sentence of any person convicted of any offence against any law, but he cannot grant pardon to a person awarded death sentence (only our President can grant pardon to a person awarded death sentence).
Difference between Governor & Lieutenant Governor
Governors are appointed in states whereas Lt. Governors are appointed in Union Territories. Both are appointed by our President. In our 28 states their head are Governors while 5 out of 8 Union Territories are headed by Lt. Governors. (Delhi, J & K, Ladakh, Puducherry, Andaman and Nicobar are headed by Lt. Governors and Chandigarh, Lakshadweep, & Dadar and Nagar Haveli & Daman and Diu are headed by Administrators). Governors are nominal/symbolic head of State whereas Lt. Governors are real head of Union Territories. Governor have to act on the advice of State Cabinet headed by Chief Minister but no such constitutional provision is for Lt. Governors. In fact Lt. Governors and Administrators of Union Territories are more powerful than Governors of States.
Our Constituent Assembly members wished that Scholars, Senior Bureaucrats, Administrators, Vice-Chancellors of Universities, Professors, etc should be appointed as Governors who will work impartially but in practise senior party workers, politicians and close relives of senior Politicians, are being appointed as governors. Again one more unhealthy practise is going on. Whenever there is a change in Union Government, the new Union Government do replace previously appointed Governors. Governors are supposed to act impartial but they do act as agent of ruling party. It is a convention that generally a person is not appointed Governor of his home state.
Our President Mrs Draupadi Murmu was governor of Jharkhand. Similarly, our Vice President Sh. Jagdeep Dhankhar was governor of west Bengal.
Shri Bhanwar Lal Purohit is the Governor of Punjab as well as Administrator of the Union Territory of Chandigarh. Shri Prafulla Patel is the Administrator of Union Territory of Lakshadweep as well as of Union Territory of Dadar and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu. Mrs. Tamilisai Soundararajan is the Governor of Tamil Nadu and she is having additional charge of Lt. Governor of Puducherry. Shri Kalraj Mishra & Mrs. Anandiben Patel are Governors of Rajasthan & Uttar Pradesh respectively. Shri Manoj Sinha and Brig. Dr. B. D. Mishra are Lt. Governors of UT of Jammu and Kashmir and UT of Ladakh respectively.
Shri Justice (Retd) S. Abdul Nazeer is Governor of Andhra Pradesh
Gulab Chand Kataria – Assam
Sh. P.S. Sreedharan Pillai – Goa
Shri Bandaru Dattatraya – Haryana
Shiv Pratap Shukla – Himachal Pradesh
