The governor of Jammu and Kashmir was the head of the Indian state Jammu and Kashmir.
When India became independent, Hari Singh was the Maharaja of the Princely State of Jammu and Kashmir. Technically he remained so until 17 November 1952, although from 20 June 1949 his son Karan Singh acted as regent. From 17 November 1952 to 30 March 1965, Karan Singh was the elected as the Sadr-e-Riyasat of the State of Jammu and Kashmir. On 30 March 1965, Karan Singh became the first Governor of Jammu and Kashmir.
The office of governor was abolished after the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019 was passed in August 2019 in the Parliament of India, reorganising the state of Jammu and Kashmir into two union territories, Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, on 31 October 2019. Provisions contained within the act created the positions of Lieutenant Governor of Jammu and Kashmir and Lieutenant Governor of Ladakh.
Sadr-e-Riyasat of Jammu and Kashmir
| # | Name | Term of office | Ref | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Took office | Left office | Time in office | |||
| 1 | Maharaja Karan Singh |
17 November 1952 | 30 March 1965 | 12 years, 133 days | |
Governors of Jammu and Kashmir
| # | Name | Term of office | Ref | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Took office | Left office | Time in office | |||
| 1 | Maharaja Karan Singh |
30 March 1965 | 15 May 1967 | 2 years, 46 days (total: 14 years, 179 days) |
|
| 2 | Bhagwan Sahay ICS |
15 May 1967 | 3 July 1973 | 6 years, 49 days | |
| 3 | L. K. Jha ICS |
3 July 1973 | 22 February 1981 | 7 years, 234 days | |
| 4 | B. K. Nehru ICS |
22 February 1981 | 26 April 1984 | 3 years, 64 days | |
| 5 | Jagmohan Malhotra IAS |
26 April 1984 | 11 July 1989 | 5 years, 76 days | |
| 6 | Gen. K. V. Krishna Rao PVSM |
11 July 1989 | 19 January 1990 | 192 days | |
| (5) | Jagmohan Malhotra IAS |
19 January 1990 | 26 May 1990 | 127 days (total: 5 years, 203 days) |
|
| 7 | Girish Chandra Saxena IPS |
26 May 1990 | 12 March 1993 | 2 years, 290 days | |
| (6) | Gen. K. V. Krishna Rao PVSM |
12 March 1993 | 2 May 1998 | 5 years, 51 days (total: 5 years, 243 days) |
|
| (7) | Girish Chandra Saxena IPS |
2 May 1998 | 4 June 2003 | 5 years, 33 days (total: 7 years, 365 days) |
|
| 8 | Lt. Gen S. K. Sinha PVSM, ADC |
4 June 2003 | 25 June 2008 | 5 years, 21 days | |
| 9 | N. N. Vohra IAS |
25 June 2008 | 23 August 2018 | 10 years, 59 days | |
| 10 | Satya Pal Malik | 23 August 2018 | 30 October 2019 | 1 year, 68 days | |
| Jammu and Kashmir state partitioned on 31 October 2019 | |||||
Janki Nath Wazir was acting governor after Karan Singh for two months, and Vazhakkulangarayil Khalid was acting governor for 12 days.
Timeline
