Murmu Announces Governor Changes in Six States

President Droupadi Murmu announced appointments and transfers affecting the governors of six states on October 12, including Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar’s appointment to Tamil Nadu and Om Prakash Mathur’s transfer to Kerala, according to a Rashtrapati Bhavan communiqué. The changes also name Braj Mohan Ram as governor of Odisha, Sudha Yadav as governor of Karnataka, Dhal Singh Bisen as governor of Uttarakhand and Dushyant Gautam as governor of Sikkim. Mathur is moving from Sikkim, while Arlekar is moving from Kerala, where he had served as governor. The appointments take effect on the dates each appointee assumes charge of the respective office, the communiqué said. It did not specify when that will happen. Arlekar had been handling the additional duties of Tamil Nadu governor since March 2026, after R N Ravi left the post to become governor of West Bengal, according to the reports. His new appointment formalizes that arrangement. One report says Arlekar assumed office in Tamil Nadu on March 12, 2026; the communiqué’s later appointment announcement nevertheless makes the effective date of the new appointments dependent on each official assuming charge.