Term of office of Governor

Article 132, Draft Constitution of India 1948

The Governor shall hold office for a term of five years from the date on which he enters upon his office:

Provided that –

(a) A Governor may, by resignation under his hand addressed to the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of the State or where there are two Houses of the Legislature of the State, to the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly and the Chairman of the Legislative Council of the State, resign his office;

(b) A Governor may, for violation of the Constitution, be removed from office by impeachment in the manner provided in article 137 of this Constitution;

(c) A Governor shall, notwithstanding the expiration of his term, continue to hold office until his successor enters upon his office.

Article 156, Constitution of India 1950

(1) The Governor shall hold office during the pleasure of the President.

⁠(2) The Governor may, by writing under his hand addressed to the President, resign his office.

⁠(3) Subject to the foregoing provisions of this article, a Governor shall hold office for a term of five years from the date on which he enters upon his office:

⁠Provided that a Governor shall, notwithstanding the expiration of his term, continue to hold office until his successor enters upon his office.

Draft Article 132 (Article 156) was debated on 31st May 1949. It set out the term of office for a Governor.

The Chairman of the Drafting Committee moved an amendment to wholly replace the Draft Article, to allow the Governor to serve at the pleasure of the President. A member argued that this would affect the Governor’s independence and make him ‘a creature of the President’ if he could be removed by the latter. Another member responded that since the Assembly had decided that the Governor would be appointed by the President, the proposed amendment was necessary as the President should have the right to remove his appointee.

One member proposed a number of changes to the Draft Article, to the effect that the Governor could be impeached if found ‘guilty of treason, or any offence against the safety, security or integrity of the Union’ or ‘by reason of physical or mental incapacity duly certified, or if found guilty of bribery or corruption, or as provided for in article 137’. The Chairman of the Drafting Committee responded that it was unnecessary to limit the grounds on which removal could occur to those explicitly stated in the Constitution.

The amendment proposed by the Chairman of the Drafting Committee was accepted by the Assembly. The amended Draft Article was adopted on 31st May 1949.