Raj Bhawan and Tamil Connection: CP Radhakrishnan third Telangana governor to hail from TN

Hyderabad: CP Radhakrishnan’s appointment as Telangana Governor is being welcomed by one and all and more so by the 5 lakh plus strong Tamil-speaking population in the city.

Call it a coincidence but the Raj Bhavan connection with Tamilians seems to be complete.

CP Radhakrishnan took charge in Raj Bhavan, Somajiguda on March 20.

Surprisingly, Tamilians have been holding the Constitutional post for the last 15 years in Telangana. The three Governors, ESL Narasimhan, Tamilisai Soundarajan, and CP Radhakrishnan, hailed from Tamil Nadu.

Historically, the bond with Tamil Nadu and erstwhile Andhra Pradesh too has been strong. Chennai was the bone of contention in the 1940s and 50s between the advocates of a separate Telugu-speaking people and the then Madras State. There are several advantages too of having a Tamil speaking Governor who more often than not understands Telugu if not being able to speak the language. Even today, there is a sizable Telugu-speaking population in Chennai and other cities in Tamil Nadu.

Social Scientist and former Chairman of BC Commission BS Ramulu felt that South being given importance in constitutional posts is a welcome development. Also, cultural similarities, no language barrier in the South compared to the Hindi belt, etc mean a Governor would feel at home in this part of the world. It is no surprise that CP Radhakrishnan expressed his thanks profusely on his new appointment, Ramulu felt.

It all started in 2009 with ESL Narasimhan, who held the gubernatorial post in the combined Andhra Pradesh State till 2014 and later continued as Constitutional Head of the state for both Telangana and Andhra Pradesh for another five years post bifurcation.

AP got a new Governor Biswabushan Harichandan in July 2019 relieving Narasimhan of AP duties. Narasimhan continued as Telangana governor for three more months from July 2019 to September 2019 after which another Tamilian Dr Tamilisai Soundarajan was chosen to replace him

Tamilisai served as the Governor from September 8, 2019, till March 19, 2024. After her sudden resignation from the post, came the announcement of CP Radhakrishnan as the new Governor of Telangana.

An ex-IPS officer, Ekkadu Srinivasan Lakshmi Narasimhan, more popularly known as ESL Narasimhan, was born in Madras Presidency in 1945. Dr Tamilisai was born in Kanya Kumari, Tamil Nadu in 1961. The new Governor CP Radhakrishnan hails from Coimbatore in Tamil Nadu and was a two-time BJP MP in 1998 and 1999.

Both ESL Narasimhan and Tamilsai Soundararajan had fond memories and good words to say about their tenure and stay in Raj Bhavan, Somajiguda. While Narasimhan had almost a ten-year association, TamiliSai functioned from Hyderabad for almost 4 and a half years. She also held additional charge of Lieutenant Governor of Puducherry for three years from 2021 to 2024. The news of Telangana Governor might have come as a pleasant surprise for CP Radhakrishnan as his family also flew down to Hyderabad to be alongside him for the swearing-in ceremony.

Another similarity between ESL and CP

Both ESL Narasimhan and CP Radhakrishnan were serving as Governors of a relatively smaller State when the President of India handed over the additional responsibilities. Narasimhan was the Chhattisgarh Governor (from January 2007) when he was also made the 22nd Governor of combined Andhra Pradesh State in December 2009. Two months later in January 2010, he was relieved of Chhattisgarh duties and was made full-time Governor of AP. Coming to CP Radhakrishnan, he was appointed as the Jharkhand Governor in Feb 2023 and exactly a year later he was chosen by the President and given additional charge as Governor of Telangana and Lieutenant Governor of Puducherry