Major Gubernatorial Reshuffle: Kavinder Gupta Named Himachal Governor, Saxena to Head Ladakh | Kashmir Life

SRINAGAR: A major reshuffle of Governors and Lieutenant Governors was announced late Friday with Droupadi Murmu appointing Kavinder Gupta, the Lieutenant Governor of Ladakh, as the new Governor of Himachal Pradesh. Gupta will be succeeded in Ladakh by Vinai Kumar Saxena, who has been serving as Lieutenant Governor of Delhi.

Gupta, a former senior leader of the Bharatiya Janata Party in Jammu and Kashmir, had been appointed Lieutenant Governor of Ladakh on July 14, 2025 and took oath on July 18. His tenure lasted about seven and a half months before his elevation as Governor of Himachal Pradesh, where he will succeed Shiv Pratap Shukla. Gupta earlier served as Deputy Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir and as Speaker of the Legislative Assembly during the 2015–2018 coalition government led first by Mufti Mohammad Sayeed and later by Mehbooba Mufti.

In a statement issued after his appointment, Gupta expressed gratitude to the President, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah for entrusting him with the responsibility. Calling it a proud moment, he said he would discharge his duties in accordance with the Constitution with commitment, devotion and impartiality, adding that he had received regular guidance from the Prime Minister during his tenure in Ladakh.

With Saxena’s appointment, he becomes the fourth Lieutenant Governor of Ladakh since the Union Territory was carved out in 2019. Radha Krishna Mathur served as the first LG from October 31, 2019 to February 19, 2023, followed by BD Mishra, who held the office from February 19, 2023 to July 14, 2025. Gupta took charge on July 18, 2025 and was the first political appointee to the post, as Mathur was a retired bureaucrat and Mishra a retired Army officer.

Sixty-eight-year-old Saxena, a former business executive, has been serving as Lieutenant Governor of Delhi since 2022. His immediate task in Ladakh is expected to involve engagement with the Union Ministry of Home Affairs over the ongoing agitation in the Union Territory led by the Leh Apex Body and the Kargil Democratic Alliance, which have been demanding Sixth Schedule status and statehood for Ladakh. The last meeting of the High Powered Committee on Ladakh, headed by Union Minister of State for Home Nityanand Rai, was held in New Delhi on February 4.

In another key appointment, Lieutenant General (Retired) Syed Ata Hasnain, former General Officer Commanding of the Srinagar-based XV Corps (Indian Army), has been appointed Governor of Bihar.

The reshuffle also saw R. N. Ravi, Governor of Tamil Nadu, being appointed Governor of West Bengal following the resignation of CV Ananda Bose, which was accepted by the President. Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar, Governor of Kerala, will discharge the functions of Governor of Tamil Nadu.

According to the official communiqué, Taranjit Singh Sandhu has been appointed Lieutenant Governor of Delhi. Meanwhile, Himachal Pradesh Governor Shukla has been shifted as Governor of Telangana in place of Jishnu Dev Varma, who has been appointed Governor of Maharashtra. Nand Kishore Yadav has been appointed Governor of Nagaland, the communiqué added.