CHENNAI: Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar assumed office as the full-time Governor of Tamil Nadu on Thursday. Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay will be calling on the Governor this evening.
Arlekar, as Kerala Governor, was given full additional charge of Tamil Nadu on March 12 since the then Governor of the State, RN Ravi, was appointed as Governor of West Bengal.
Since Arlekar had been holding additional charge of Tamil Nadu for the past seven months, recently, there were criticisms in the political circles that Tamil Nadu was not considered worthy of a full-time Governor. Just after the transfer of Ravi, there were speculations that former Union Home Secretary Ajay Kumar Bhalla was the likely candidate for Tamil Nadu Governor. But it did not materialise.
In August, there were speculations that N Kiran Kumar Reddy, former Chief Minister of undivided Andhra Pradesh, would be appointed as the possible successor.
However, President Droupadi Murmu appointed Arlekar as the full-time Governor of Tamil Nadu on October 12.
After completing his scheduled programmes in Kerala, Arlekar returned to Chennai late on Wednesday night. Fisheries Minister A Srinath, Chief Secretary M Sai Kumar and senior officials received him at the Chennai airport. Later, Arlekar was accorded a ceremonial reception at the Lok Bhavan.
On Thursday morning, Arlekar formally assumed the office of Governor in Tamil Nadu.