New Delhi

Former diplomat Taranjit Singh Sandhu will take oath as the 23rd Lieutenant Governor of Delhi on March 11, officials said on Monday.

The swearing-in ceremony will be held at Lok Niwas (formerly Raj Niwas) at 1.30 pm, where the oath of office will be administered by the Chief Justice of the Delhi High Court.

Sandhu will succeed Vinai Kumar Saxena, who has been appointed as the Lieutenant Governor of Ladakh. Saxena is expected to take oath for his new role on Friday, officials said, adding that preparations are currently underway for the transition.

Earlier in the day, Sandhu visited Lok Niwas and met Saxena as arrangements for the upcoming ceremony progressed.

A 1988-batch officer of the Indian Foreign Service, Sandhu has had a long diplomatic career with extensive experience in India–United States relations.

He served as India’s Ambassador to the United States from February 2020 to January 2024. Prior to that, he was the Deputy Chief of Mission at the Indian Embassy in Washington, D.C. between July 2013 and January 2017.

Earlier in his career, he also served as First Secretary (Political) at the embassy in Washington from 1997 to 2000, where he handled engagement with the United States Congress.

Sandhu also held a diplomatic assignment at the Permanent Mission of India to the United Nations between July 2005 and February 2009.

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The 63-year-old diplomat had entered electoral politics in 2024, contesting the Lok Sabha election on a ticket from the Bharatiya Janata Party from the Amritsar constituency, but was unsuccessful.