Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala Governor-designate Om Prakash Mathur arrived in the state capital on Thursday night, ahead of his swearing-in at the Lok Bhavan auditorium at 12.15 pm on Friday. Chief Minister V.D. Satheesan, Speaker Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan, Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala and BJP legislator and former Union Minister V. Muraleedharan were among those who received him at the airport.
Mathur, 74, succeeds Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar, who was given an official farewell by the state government at a dinner hosted at a hotel here on Thursday. Satheesan and his team also saw off the outgoing Governor at the airport.
At the farewell, Satheesan said the government had enjoyed a warm relationship with Arlekar and conveyed the gratitude of the government and the people of the state. Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala said Arlekar tried to work jointly with the government, while Speaker Radhakrishnan described him as a Governor who interacted the most with the public. Arlekar said he was only returning the affection shown to him by the people. He said he was happy to have completed his tenure without much confrontation.
Arlekar had been Kerala Governor since January 2, 2025, and had also held charge as Governor of Tamil Nadu since March 5 this year before taking full-time charge there on October 15.
Mathur is a veteran BJP organisational leader. He served as the 18th Governor of Sikkim from July 2024 until October 2026, represented Rajasthan in the Rajya Sabha for two terms — from 2008 to 2014 and from 2016 to 2022 — and was president of the Rajasthan BJP from 2008 to 2009.