The Lieutenant Governor of Delhi is the constitutional head of the National Capital Territory of Delhi. The post was established in September 1966, following the enactment of The Delhi Administration Act, 1966. Thereafter, the former Delhi Legislative Assembly was replaced by the Delhi Metropolitan Council comprising 56 elected and 5 nominated members with the Lieutenant Governor of Delhi presiding as its head. The Council, however, had no legislative powers: it merely played an advisory role in the governance of Delhi. This setup sustained until 1990, when the Assembly was reinstated; the position of Lieutenant Governor retained its role.
The National Capital Territory of Delhi (Amendment) Bill, 2021 was introduced in the Parliament of India and was passed by both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha. The bill specifies that, in any law made by the Legislative Assembly, the term "Government" shall refer to the Lieutenant Governor.
The incumbent Lieutenant Governor of Delhi is Taranjit Singh Sandhu. Raj Niwas in Civil Lines, Delhi, serves as the Lieutenant Governor's official residence.
Predecessor Chief Commissioners Delhi was previously headed by a Chief Commissioner who was an officer of the Imperial Civil Service. # NamePortrait Took office Left officeDuration 1 Shankar Prasada, 1948 1954 2 Anand Dattahaya Pandit, 1954 1959 3 Bhagwan Sahay, 1959 1963 4 V. Viswanathan, 1964 7 September 1966 5 Aditya Nath Jha, 7 September 1966 1 November 1966
Lieutenant governors (1966-present) In 1966, the Delhi Administration Act was passed, which established the Delhi Metropolitan Council with the Lieutenant Governor of Delhi as its head. So far, there have been 21 individuals who have held this post, including 10 IAS officers, 4 ICS officers, 2 IPS officers, 2 senior IAF officers, and 2 IFS officers. The appointees have generally been retired, with the exception of Najeeb Jung, who resigned from service and Vinai Kumar Saxena who was transferred as the Lieutenant governor of Ladakh. List of Lieutenant Governors of Delhi Portrait Name Took office Left office Duration 1 Aditya Nath Jha, 7 November 1966 19 January 1972 2 M.C. Pimputkar, 19 January 1972 23 April 1972 3 Baleshwar Prasad, 24 April 1972 3 October 1974 4 Krishan Chand, 3 October 1974 30 March 1978 5 Dalip Rai Kohli, 30 March 1978 17 February 1980 6 Jagmohan Malhotra, 17 February 1980 30 March 1981 7 Sundar Lal Khurana, 30 March 1981 2 September 1982 (6) Jagmohan Malhotra, 2 September 1982 25 April 1984 8 P. G. Gavai, 25 April 1984 Nov 1984 9 Mohan M.K. Wali, Nov 1984 Nov 1985 10 AVM H. L. Kapur, 16 November 1985 3 August 1988 11 Romesh Bhandari, 4 August 1988 11 December 1989 12 MIAF Arjan Singh, 12 December 1989 December 1990 13 Markandey Singh, Dec 1990 4 May 1992 14 Prasannabhai Karunashankar Dave, 4 May 1992 4 January 1997 15 Tejendra Khanna, 4 January 1997 20 April 1998 16 Vijai Kapoor, 20 April 1998 9 June 2004 17 Banwari Lal Joshi, 9 June 2004 9 April 2007 (15) Tejendra Khanna, 9 April 2007 9 July 2013 18 Najeeb Jung, 9 July 2013 22 December 2016 19 Anil Baijal, 31 December 2016 18 May 2022 20 Vinai Kumar Saxena 26 May 2022 13 March 202621Taranjit Singh Sandhu, 11 March 2026 Incumbent
See also Government of Delhi Governors in India Union territory Chief Minister of Delhi
References
External links Lieutenant Governor of Delhi, Official website