Post: | Minister of Defence |
Insignia: | Ministry of Defence India.svg |
Insigniasize: | 280px |
Insigniacaption: | Emblem of India |
Flag: | Flag of India.svg |
Flagsize: | 110px |
Flagborder: | yes |
Flagcaption: | Flag of India |
Incumbent: | Rajnath Singh |
Incumbentsince: | 30 May 2019 |
Department: | Ministry of Defence |
Style: | The Honourable |
Member Of: | Union Cabinet |
Reports To: | President of India Prime Minister of India Parliament of India |
Appointer: | President |
Appointer Qualified: | on the advice of the Prime Minister |
Termlength: | 5 years |
Formation: | 15 August 1947 |
First: | Baldev Singh |
Deputy: | Sanjay Seth |
The Minister of Defence (ISO: Rakṣā Maṁtrī) is the head of the Ministry of Defence and a high ranking minister of the Government of India. The Defence Minister is one of the most senior offices in the Union Council of Ministers as well as being a high-level minister in the union cabinet. The defence minister additionally serves as President of the Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses, and as Chancellor of the Defence Institute of Advanced Technology and of the National Defence University.
They are often assisted by a Minister of State for Defence and less-commonly, the lower-ranked Deputy Minister of Defence.
The first defence minister of independent India was Baldev Singh Chokkar, who served in Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru's cabinet during 1947–52. Rajnath Singh is the current defence minister of India.
Portrait | Minister | Term of office | Political party | Ministry | Prime Minister | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
From | To | Period | ||||||||
1 | Baldev Singh | 15 August 1947 | 13 May 1952 | Indian National Congress | Nehru I | Jawaharlal Nehru | ||||
2 | N. Gopalaswami Ayyangar | 13 May 1952 | 10 February 1953 | Nehru II | ||||||
Jawaharlal Nehru (Prime Minister) | 10 February 1953 | 10 January 1955 | ||||||||
3 | Kailash Nath Katju | 10 January 1955 | 30 January 1957 | |||||||
Jawaharlal Nehru (Prime Minister) | 30 January 1957 | 17 April 1957 | ||||||||
4 | V. K. Krishna Menon | 17 April 1957 | 2 April 1962 | Nehru III | ||||||
2 April 1962 | 31 October 1962 | Nehru IV | ||||||||
Jawaharlal Nehru (Prime Minister) | 31 October 1962 | 14 November 1962 | ||||||||
5 | Yashwantrao Chavan | 14 November 1962 | 27 May 1964 | |||||||
27 May 1964 | 9 June 1964 | Nanda I | Gulzarilal Nanda | |||||||
9 June 1964 | 11 January 1966 | Shastri | Lal Bahadur Shastri | |||||||
11 January 1966 | 24 January 1966 | Nanda II | Gulzarilal Nanda | |||||||
24 January 1966 | 13 November 1966 | Indira I | Indira Gandhi | |||||||
6 | Swaran Singh | 13 November 1966 | 13 March 1967 | |||||||
13 March 1967 | 27 June 1970 | Indira II | ||||||||
7 | Jagjivan Ram | 27 June 1970 | 18 March 1971 | Indian National Congress (R) | ||||||
18 March 1971 | 10 October 1974 | Indira III | ||||||||
(6) | Swaran Singh | 10 October 1974 | 1 December 1975 | |||||||
Indira Gandhi (Prime Minister) | 1 December 1975 | 20 December 1975 | ||||||||
8 | Bansi Lal | 21 December 1975 | 24 March 1977 | |||||||
(7) | Jagjivan Ram (Deputy Prime Minister from 24 January 1979) | 24 March 1977 | 28 July 1979 | Janata Party | Desai | Morarji Desai | ||||
9 | Chidambaram Subramaniam | 28 July 1979 | 14 January 1980 | Indian National Congress (Urs) | Charan | Charan Singh | ||||
Indira Gandhi (Prime Minister) | 14 January 1980 | 15 January 1982 | Indian National Congress (I) | Indira IV | Indira Gandhi | |||||
10 | Ramaswamy Venkataraman | 15 January 1982 | 2 August 1984 | |||||||
11 | Shankarrao Chavan | 2 August 1984 | 31 October 1984 | |||||||
31 October 1984 | 31 December 1984 | Rajiv I | Rajiv Gandhi | |||||||
12 | P. V. Narasimha Rao | 31 December 1984 | 25 September 1985 | Rajiv II | ||||||
Rajiv Gandhi (Prime Minister) | 25 September 1985 | 24 January 1987 | ||||||||
13 | V. P. Singh | 24 January 1987 | 12 April 1987 | |||||||
14 | K. C. Pant | 12 April 1987 | 2 December 1989 | |||||||
Vishwanath Pratap Singh (Prime Minister) | 2 December 1989 | 10 November 1990 | Janata Dal | Vishwanath | Vishwanath Pratap Singh | |||||
Chandra Shekhar (Prime Minister) | 10 November 1990 | 21 June 1991 | Samajwadi Janata Party (Rashtriya) | Chandra Shekhar | Chandra Shekhar | |||||
P. V. Narasimha Rao (Prime Minister) | 21 June 1991 | 26 June 1991 | Indian National Congress (I) | Rao | P. V. Narasimha Rao | |||||
15 | Sharad Pawar | 26 June 1991 | 6 March 1993 | |||||||
P. V. Narasimha Rao (Prime Minister) | 6 March 1993 | 16 May 1996 | ||||||||
16 | Pramod Mahajan | 16 May 1996 | 1 June 1996 | Bharatiya Janata Party | Vajpayee I | Atal Bihari Vajpayee | ||||
17 | Mulayam Singh Yadav | 1 June 1996 | 21 April 1997 | Samajwadi Party | Deve Gowda | H. D. Deve Gowda | ||||
21 April 1997 | 18 March 1998 | Gujral | Inder Kumar Gujral | |||||||
18 | George Fernandes | 19 March 1998 | 13 October 1999 | Samata Party | Vajpayee II | Atal Bihari Vajpayee | ||||
13 October 1999 | 16 March 2001 | Vajpayee III | ||||||||
19 | Jaswant Singh | 16 March 2001 | 21 October 2001 | Bharatiya Janata Party | ||||||
(18) | George Fernandes | 21 October 2001 | 22 May 2004 | Janata Dal (United) | ||||||
20 | Pranab Mukherjee | 23 May 2004 | 26 October 2006 | Indian National Congress | Manmohan I | Manmohan Singh | ||||
21 | A. K. Antony | 26 October 2006 | 22 May 2009 | |||||||
23 May 2009 | 26 May 2014 | Manmohan II | ||||||||
22 | Arun Jaitley | 27 May 2014 | 9 November 2014 | Bharatiya Janata Party | Modi I | Narendra Modi | ||||
23 | Manohar Parrikar | 9 November 2014 | 13 March 2017 | |||||||
(22) | Arun Jaitley | 13 March 2017 | 3 September 2017 | |||||||
24 | Nirmala Sitharaman | 3 September 2017 | 30 May 2019 | |||||||
25 | Rajnath Singh | 31 May 2019 | 9 June 2024 | Modi II | ||||||
10 June 2024 | Incumbent | Modi III | ||||||||
Portrait | Minister | Term of office | Political party | Ministry | Prime Minister | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
From | To | Period | ||||||||
1 | Mahavir Tyagi Minister of Defence Organisation | 16 March 1953 | 17 April 1957 | Indian National Congress | Nehru II | Jawaharlal Nehru | ||||
2 | Kotha Raghuramaiah Minister of Defence Production, since 14 November 1962 | 16 April 1962 | 27 May 1964 | Indian National Congress | Nehru IV | |||||
27 May 1964 | 9 June 1964 | Nanda I | Gulzarilal Nanda | |||||||
3 | Alungal Mathai Thomas (Defence Production) | 13 June 1964 | 11 January 1966 | Shastri | Lal Bahadur Shastri | |||||
4 | Jaisukhlal Hathi | 29 October 1965 | 11 January 1966 | |||||||
(3) | Alungal Mathai Thomas (Defence Production) | 11 January 1966 | 24 January 1966 | Nanda II | Gulzarilal Nanda | |||||
(4) | Jaisukhlal Hathi | |||||||||
(3) | Alungal Mathai Thomas (Defence Production since 31 January 1966) | 24 January 1966 | 13 March 1967 | Indira I | Indira Gandhi | |||||
(4) | Jaisukhlal Hathi Minister of Defence Supplies, until 13 November 1966 | |||||||||
5 | Bali Ram Bhagat | 13 March 1967 | 14 November 1967 | Indira II | ||||||
6 | Lalit Narayan Mishra (Defence Production) | 14 November 1967 | 27 June 1970 | |||||||
7 | Narendrasinghji Mahida | 27 June 1970 | 18 March 1971 | Indian National Congress (R) | ||||||
8 | Prakash Chandra Sethi (Defence Production) | 27 June 1970 | 18 March 1971 | |||||||
18 March 1971 | 2 May 1971 | Indira III | ||||||||
9 | Vidya Charan Shukla (Defence Production) | 2 May 1971 | 10 October 1974 | |||||||
10 | Ram Niwas Mirdha (Defence Production) | 10 October 1974 | 21 December 1975 | |||||||
11 | Vitthalrao Gadgil (Defence Production) | 25 December 1975 | 24 March 1977 | |||||||
12 | Janaki Ballabh Patnaik | 23 December 1976 | 24 March 1977 | |||||||
13 | Sher Singh Kadyan | 14 August 1977 | 28 July 1979 | Janata Party | Desai | Morarji Desai | ||||
14 | Jagbir Singh | 30 July 1979 | 14 January 1980 | Janata Party (Secular) | Charan | Charan Singh | ||||
15 | C. P. N. Singh | 3 March 1980 | 19 October 1980 | Indian National Congress (I) | Indira IV | Indira Gandhi | ||||
16 | Shivraj Patil | 19 October 1980 | 15 January 1982 | |||||||
17 | Kamakhya Prasad Singh Deo | 29 January 1983 | 31 October 1984 | |||||||
4 November 1984 | 31 December 1984 | Rajiv I | Rajiv Gandhi | |||||||
18 | Sukh Ram (Defence Production and Defence Supplies) | 25 September 1985 | 22 October 1986 | Rajiv II | ||||||
19 | Arun Singh (Defence Research and Development Organisation) | 25 September 1985 | 18 July 1987 | |||||||
(16) | Shivraj Patil | 22 October 1986 | 25 June 1988 | |||||||
20 | Chintamani Panigrahi (Defence Production and Defence Supplies) | 25 June 1988 | 4 July 1989 | |||||||
21 | Dumar Lal Baitha (Defence Production and Supplies) | 4 July 1989 | 2 December 1989 | |||||||
22 | Raja Ramanna | 20 January 1990 | 10 November 1990 | Janata Dal | Vishwanath | Vishwanath Pratap Singh | ||||
23 | Lalit Vijay Singh | 21 November 1990 | 21 June 1991 | Samajwadi Janata Party (Rashtriya) | Chandra Shekhar | Chandra Shekhar | ||||
24 | S. Krishna Kumar | 26 June 1991 | 18 January 1993 | Indian National Congress (I) | Rao | P. V. Narasimha Rao | ||||
25 | Mallikarjun Goud | 18 January 1993 | 19 January 1995 | |||||||
26 | Suresh Pachouri (Defence Production and Supplies) | 15 September 1995 | 16 May 1996 | |||||||
27 | Mallikarjun Goud (Defence, Defence Research and Development) | 30 September 1995 | 16 May 1996 | |||||||
28 | N. V. N. Somu | 6 July 1996 | 21 April 1997 | Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam | Deve Gowda | H. D. Deve Gowda | ||||
21 April 1997 | 14 November 1997 | Gujral | Inder Kumar Gujral | |||||||
29 | Harin Pathak | 13 October 1999 | 14 November 2000 | Bharatiya Janata Party | Vajpayee III | Atal Bihari Vajpayee | ||||
30 | Bachi Singh Rawat | 13 October 1999 | 22 November 1999 | |||||||
31 | Krishnam Raju | 22 July 2001 | 1 July 2002 | |||||||
(29) | Harin Pathak (Defence Production and Supplies) | 15 October 2001 | 29 January 2003 | |||||||
32 | Chaman Lal Gupta | 1 July 2002 | 22 May 2004 | |||||||
33 | O. Rajagopal | 29 January 2003 | 22 May 2004 | |||||||
34 | Bijoy Krishna Handique | 23 May 2004 | 29 January 2006 | Indian National Congress | Manmohan I | Manmohan Singh | ||||
35 | Rao Inderjit Singh | 29 January 2006 | 22 May 2009 | |||||||
36 | M. M. Pallam Raju (Defence Production, until 28 May 2009) | 29 January 2006 | 22 May 2009 | |||||||
28 May 2009 | 28 October 2012 | Manmohan II | ||||||||
37 | Jitin Prasada | 28 October 2012 | 29 October 2012 | |||||||
38 | Lalchand Kataria | 28 October 2012 | 31 October 2012 | |||||||
39 | Jitendra Singh | 28 October 2012 | 26 May 2014 | |||||||
(35) | Rao Inderjit Singh | 27 May 2014 | 5 July 2016 | Bharatiya Janata Party | Modi I | Narendra Modi | ||||
40 | Subhash Bhamre | 5 July 2016 | 30 May 2019 | |||||||
41 | Shripad Yesso Naik | 31 May 2019 | 7 July 2021 | Modi II | ||||||
42 | Ajay Bhatt | 7 July 2021 | 9 June 2024 | |||||||
43 | Sanjay Seth | 10 June 2024 | Incumbent | Modi III | ||||||
Portrait | Minister | Term of office | Political party | Ministry | Prime Minister | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
From | To | Period | ||||||||
1 | Kumar Shri Himmatsinhji | 14 August 1950 | 29 February 1952 | Indian National Congress | Nehru I | Jawaharlal Nehru | ||||
2 | Surjit Singh Majithia | 12 August 1952 | 17 April 1957 | Indian National Congress | Nehru II | |||||
3 | Satish Chandra (Defence Production, from 14 July 1955) | 27 November 1952 | 17 April 1957 | |||||||
(2) | Surjit Singh Majithia | 17 April 1957 | 10 April 1962 | Nehru III | ||||||
4 | Kotha Raghuramaiah | 21 May 1957 | 10 April 1962 | |||||||
5 | Dajisaheb Chavan | 8 May 1962 | 27 May 1964 | Indian National Congress | Nehru IV | |||||
27 May 1964 | 9 June 1964 | Nanda I | Gulzarilal Nanda | |||||||
6 | Datla Satyanarayana Raju | 15 June 1964 | 24 January 1966 | Indian National Congress | Shastri | Lal Bahadur Shastri | ||||
7 | Shyam Dhar Mishra | 24 January 1966 | 14 February 1966 | Indira I | Indira Gandhi | |||||
8 | M. R. Krishna | 16 November 1967 | 27 June 1970 | Indian National Congress | Indira II | |||||
9 | Janaki Ballabh Patnaik | 5 February 1973 | 23 December 1976 | Indian National Congress (R) | Indira III | |||||
10 | Kamakhya Prasad Singh Deo | 15 January 1982 | 29 January 1983 | Indian National Congress (I) | Indira IV | Indira Gandhi | ||||