Meet The Governor

Shri Kavinder Gupta, born on 2 December 1959 in Jammu, is a seasoned public leader and administrator with over four decades of experience in public service and governance. His father served as a Central Government employee in the Postal Department, and in 1963, the family relocated to Sangrur, Punjab, where Shri Kavinder Gupta began his early education. He later studied in Ferozepur and Gurdaspur, completing his graduation in 1979 from Government Degree College, Gurdaspur, Punjab. In the early 1970s.

Shri Kavinder Gupta joined the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), marking the beginning of his social and public life. During the Emergency period (1975–1977), he was imprisoned with senior RSS leaders at Gurdaspur and Patiala Jail for his activism, reflecting his strong commitment to democratic values. From 1978 to 1979, he served as Secretary of the Punjab unit of the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP). In 1988, he was appointed District President of the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM), Jammu & Kashmir. His organisational leadership expanded further when he served as State President of the BJYM, Jammu & Kashmir, from 1993 to 1998. 

Shri Kavinder Gupta's entry into elected governance began at the municipal level, where he was elected the first Mayor of the Jammu Municipal Corporation (JMC) and served three consecutive terms (2005–2010). During this period, he focused on civic reforms, sanitation, and urban infrastructure development, earning recognition for effective grassroots governance. In 2014, Shri Kavinder Gupta was elected as a Bharatiya Janata Party MLA from the Gandhi Nagar Assembly constituency. On 18 March 2015, he was elected Speaker of the Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly, becoming the first BJP leader to hold this position in the State. He later served as Deputy Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir, following his appointment on 30 April 2018. On 14 July 2025. 

Shri Kavinder Gupta was appointed as the Lieutenant Governor of Ladakh by the Hon'ble President of India, becoming the third Lieutenant Governor of the Union Territory. During his tenure, he focused on infrastructure development, education, renewable energy, tourism, and sustainable, inclusive, and transparent governance, while safeguarding Ladakh's unique cultural and ecological heritage. On 5 March 2026, Shri Kavinder Gupta was appointed as the Governor of Himachal Pradesh by the Hon'ble President of India..