Governor of Rajasthan: Updated Study Material

Updated: 19 September 2026

1. Current Governor

Fact Detail
Governor Shri Haribhau Kisanrao Bagde
Appointment announced 27 July 2024, by Rashtrapati Bhavan
Assumed office 31 July 2024
Oath Administered by the then Chief Justice of Rajasthan High Court, Justice Manindra Mohan Shrivastava; taken in Hindi
Earlier office Speaker of the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly

Exam tip: The appointment announcement date and the date of assuming office are different. Appointment announcement · Oath press note · Governor profile

2. Rajasthan: Rajpramukh to Governor

  • 30 March 1949: Maharaja Sawai Man Singh of Jaipur became Rajpramukh.
  • 1 November 1956: The office of Rajpramukh ended following the Seventh Constitutional Amendment. Sardar Gurumukh Nihal Singh became Rajasthan's first Governor.
  • 2 December 2025: The Governor's Secretariat reported the notification changing the name Raj Bhavan to Lok Bhavan. The constitutional office remains Governor.

Official historical introduction · 2025 press notes

3. Constitutional Distinctions

Article Point to remember
155 The President appoints the Governor.
156 The ordinary term is five years, but the Governor holds office during the President's pleasure.
159 The Chief Justice of the relevant High Court administers the oath; in the Chief Justice's absence, the senior-most available judge does so.

The original notes count Bagde as the 22nd regular Governor. Do not mix regular Governors with acting or additional-charge holders when using ordinal numbers. Constitution of India

4. Quick Revision

  1. Current Governor: Haribhau Kisanrao Bagde.
  2. Appointment announcement: 27 July 2024.
  3. Assumption of office: 31 July 2024.
  4. Oath administered by: Justice Manindra Mohan Shrivastava.
  5. First Governor: Sardar Gurumukh Nihal Singh.
  6. New name of Raj Bhavan: Lok Bhavan.

5. Practice Questions

  1. When did the current Governor assume office? 31 July 2024.
  2. Who appoints a Governor? The President of India.
  3. Who was Rajasthan's first Governor? Sardar Gurumukh Nihal Singh.
  4. What is the new name of Raj Bhavan? Lok Bhavan.

6. State Executive and Constitutional Position

Part VI of the Constitution deals with the states. Articles 153–167 cover the state executive: the Governor, Council of Ministers headed by the Chief Minister, and Advocate General. The Governor is the constitutional head; the Council of Ministers normally exercises executive power through its advice.

Article Provision
153 A Governor for each state; one person may be Governor of two or more states.
154 State executive power is vested in the Governor.
157 Indian citizenship and minimum age of 35 years are required.
158 The Governor cannot remain a member of Parliament or a state legislature, or hold another office of profit.
161 Power to grant pardons, reprieves, respites or remissions, or to suspend, remit or commute sentences for offences within the state's executive power.
163 Council of Ministers aids and advises the Governor, except where the Constitution requires discretion.
164 Governor appoints the Chief Minister and appoints other ministers on the Chief Minister's advice.
165 Governor appoints the state's Advocate General.
166–167 Government business is conducted in the Governor's name; the Chief Minister supplies information to the Governor.

Important: A Governor has no constitutional impeachment process. Resignation is addressed to the President. Constitution of India

7. Powers and Functions

Executive

The Governor appoints the Chief Minister, other ministers on the Chief Minister's advice, and the Advocate General. State government executive actions are formally expressed in the Governor's name. The Governor may report a failure of constitutional machinery to the President under Article 356. Appointments to state commissions and universities depend on the applicable constitutional or state-law provisions; they should not be treated as one uniform power.

Legislative

Article Function
174 Summons and prorogues the legislature and dissolves the Legislative Assembly.
175–176 Addresses the legislature and gives the special address at the first session after an election and the first session each year.
200 On a bill, may assent, withhold assent, or reserve it for the President. A non-money bill may be returned for reconsideration. If repassed, assent cannot be withheld.
201 President considers a bill reserved by the Governor.
213 Promulgates an ordinance when the legislature is not in session, subject to constitutional conditions.

An ordinance must be laid before the legislature and ordinarily ceases to operate six weeks after reassembly, unless approved earlier or withdrawn. A money bill cannot be returned for reconsideration under Article 200.

Financial and Judicial

The Governor causes the annual financial statement to be laid before the legislature (Article 202). A demand for a grant requires the Governor's recommendation (Article 203). The Governor's clemency power is under Article 161. The President consults the Governor when appointing a High Court judge (Article 217); district judge appointments are made by the Governor in consultation with the High Court (Article 233). These functions operate within constitutional procedures and ministerial advice where applicable.

Discretion and Constitutional Crisis

Discretion may become relevant when no party has a clear majority, or when the Governor considers reserving a bill for the President. A claim of majority should ordinarily be tested on the Assembly floor. A Governor's report can lead to consideration of President's Rule under Article 356; the President issues the proclamation, subject to parliamentary approval. Constitution of India

8. Rajasthan Historical Exam Facts

Fact Answer
First Governor from 1956 Sardar Gurumukh Nihal Singh
First woman Governor Pratibha Patil
Other women regular Governors Prabha Rau and Margaret Alva
Governor who later became India's first woman President Pratibha Patil
Governors who died in office, as listed in the original notes Darbara Singh, Nirmal Chandra Jain, S. K. Singh, Prabha Rau
President's Rule in Rajasthan Four periods: 1967, 1977, 1980 and 1992–93

The first Governor was appointed on 25 October 1956 and the office began on 1 November 1956. These are different dates. Official Rajasthan history

9. Regular Governors: Chronological Revision

The sequence below follows the regular-governor count in the supplied notes. Acting Governors and additional-charge holders are omitted from the numbering.

No. Governor Period
1 Gurumukh Nihal Singh 1956–1962
2 Sampurnanand 1962–1967
3 Hukum Singh 1967–1972
4 Joginder Singh 1972–1977
5 Raghukul Tilak 1977–1981
6 O. P. Mehra 1982–1985
7 Vasant Rao Patil 1985–1987
8 Sukhdev Prasad 1988–1990
9 Devi Prasad Chattopadhyay 1990–1991
10 M. Chenna Reddy 1992–1993
11 Baliram Bhagat 1993–1998
12 Darbara Singh 1998
13 Anshuman Singh 1999–2003
14 Nirmal Chandra Jain 2003
15 Madan Lal Khurana 2004
16 Pratibha Patil 2004–2007
17 S. K. Singh 2007–2009
18 Prabha Rau 2010
19 Margaret Alva 2012–2014
20 Kalyan Singh 2014–2019
21 Kalraj Mishra 2019–2024
22 Haribhau Kisanrao Bagde 2024–present

For exact day-by-day terms and acting appointments, consult the official former-Governors list. The list may count every tenure and additional charge separately, so its row numbers should not be read as the regular-governor ordinal.

10. More Practice Questions

  1. Which Article deals with appointment of a Governor? Article 155.
  2. What is the minimum age for a Governor? 35 years.
  3. Who appoints other ministers? The Governor on the Chief Minister's advice.
  4. Which Article covers assent to state bills? Article 200.
  5. Can a money bill be returned for reconsideration? No.
  6. Who issues a President's Rule proclamation? The President.
  7. How many times has Rajasthan been under President's Rule according to the supplied notes? Four.