India’s security, in its entirety, is the job of the Indian government. The Ministry of Defence gives the Armed Forces the necessary resources and the regulatory structure to carry out their duties in the context of national protection. A top politician in the Indian government, the Raksha Mantri (Defence Minister) is in charge of the Ministry of Defence. In addition to functioning as a high-ranking official in the union government, the Defense minister has one of the most critical positions in the Union Council of Ministers. The Defence ministry frequently receives assistance from a Minister of State for Defense and less frequently from the lower-ranking Deputy Minister of Defence. Baldev Singh Chokkar, a member of Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru’s government from 1947 to 1952, performed as India’s first Defence minister after gaining independence. Since 1947, India has seen 29 Defence Ministers and India’s current Defence minister is Rajnath Singh.
List of Defence Minister of India
| S. No | Defence Minister | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Baldev Singh | 15 August 1947 | 13 May 1952 |
| 2 | N. Gopalaswami Ayyangar | 13 May 1952 | 10 February 1953 |
| 3 | Jawaharlal Nehru | 10 February 1953 | 10 January 1955 |
| 4 | Kailash Nath Katju | 10 January 1955 | 30 January 1957 |
| 5 | Jawaharlal Nehru | 30 January 1957 | 17 April 1957 |
| 6 | V. K. Krishna Menon | 17 April 1957 | 31 October 1962 |
| 7 | Jawaharlal Nehru | 31 October 1962 | 14 November 1962 |
| 8 | Yashwantrao Chavan | 14 November 1962 | 13 November 1966 |
| 9 | Swaran Singh | 13 November 1966 | 27 June 1970 |
| 10 | Jagjivan Ram | 27 June 1970 | 10 October 1974 |
| 11 | Swaran Singh | 10 October 1974 | 1 December 1975 |
| 12 | Indira Gandhi | 1 December 1975 | 20 December 1975 |
| 13 | Bansi Lal | 21 December 1975 | 24 March 1977 |
| 14 | Jagjivan Ram | 24 March 1977 | 28 July 1979 |
| 15 | Chidambaram Subramaniam | 28 July 1979 | 14 January 1980 |
| 16 | Indira Gandhi | 14 January 1980 | 15 January 1982 |
| 17 | Ramaswamy Venkataraman | 15 January 1982 | 2 August 1984 |
| 18 | Shankarrao Chavan | 2 August 1984 | 31 December 1984 |
| 19 | P. V. Narasimha Rao | 1 January 1985 | 25 September 1985 |
| 20 | Rajiv Gandhi | 25 September 1985 | 24 January 1987 |
| 21 | Vishwanath Pratap Singh | 24 January 1987 | 12 April 1987 |
| 22 | K. C. Pant | 13 April 1987 | 1 December 1989 |
| 23 | Vishwanath Pratap Singh | 2 December 1989 | 10 November 1990 |
| 24 | Chandra Shekhar | 10 November 1990 | 21 June 1991 |
| 25 | P. V. Narasimha Rao | 21 June 1991 | 26 June 1991 |
| 26 | Sharad Pawar | 26 June 1991 | 6 March 1993 |
| 27 | P. V. Narasimha Rao | 6 March 1993 | 16 May 1996 |
| 28 | Pramod Mahajan | 16 May 1996 | 1 June 1996 |
| 29 | Mulayam Singh Yadav | 1 June 1996 | 19 March 1998 |
| 30 | George Fernandes | 19 March 1998 | 16 March 2001 |
| 31 | Jaswant Singh | 16 March 2001 | 21 October 2001 |
| 32 | George Fernandes | 21 October 2001 | 22 May 2004 |
| 33 | Pranab Mukherjee | 22 May 2004 | 26 October 2006 |
| 34 | A. K. Antony | 26 October 2006 | 26 May 2014 |
| 35 | Arun Jaitley | 26 May 2014 | 9 November 2014 |
| 36 | Manohar Parrikar | 9 November 2014 | 13 March 2017 |
| 37 | Arun Jaitley | 13 March 2017 | 3 September 2017 |
| 38 | Nirmala Sitharaman | 3 September 2017 | 30 May 2019 |
| 39 | Rajnath Singh | 30 May 2019 | Incumbent |
Let’s check out all the 29 Defence Ministers of India in more detail:
Baldev Singh
Baldev Singh was a politician of the Indian National Congress political party and the first Defence Minister of India. He served the nation as the Defence Minister for 4 years and 272 days under the leadership of Jawaharlal Nehru’s government from 15 August 1947 to 13 May 1952. Born on 11 July 1902 in Dumna village in Punjab, he came from a Jat family and completed his schooling in Kainaur. He earned his graduation degree from Khalsa college in Amritsar and later joined his father’s business. Baldev Singh made his political debut by winning an election of the Punjab provincial assembly under the flag of the Panthic party. He took a stand for the Sikh Community in the Creep Mission in 1942 whose intention was to give some sort of autonomy to Indians. When Singh became the Defence minister, more than 10 million Hindus and Sikhs were migrating to the freshly formed Pakistan, and Singh, along with Vallabhbhai Patel, was in charge of organizing the Indian Army’s operations to offer protection, assistance, and sanctuary at that time. For the hundreds of thousands of individuals who were flooding India, they established major rehabilitation and humanitarian operations. With Pakistani militants and some army personnel invading the state with the intention of colonizing it into Pakistan, the war in Kashmir was being planned and prepared under the direction of Defence Minister Singh. In the inaugural democratic elections organized underneath the new Indian Constitution, Baldev Singh was picked to represent the Indian National Congress in the Indian Parliament in 1952.
N. Gopalaswami Ayyangar
Coming from the Indian National Congress and under the leadership of Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, N. Gopalaswami Ayyangar was picked as the 2nf Defence Minister of India. He held the position of Defence Minister of India for 273 days from 13 May 1952 to 10 February 1953. Born on 31 March 1882 in Madras Presidency, he earned his graduation in the Presidency and Law college in Madras. A diplomat and civil servant from India, he went on to work as a minister in the country’s first government after independence. He also served as the prime minister of the autonomous state of Jammu and Kashmir. In his capacity as India’s spokesperson on Kashmir matters at the UN Security Council, he ultimately authored Article 370 of the Indian Constitution, which gave Jammu and Kashmir sovereignty. Up until 1947, Ayyangar, a renowned bureaucrat and government officer, possessed seven honors, notably Diwan Bahadur, the greatest term given by a British governor. Ayyangar has also been in the position of Indian Railway Minister, and it was during his leadership that the railroads saw a major development of both services and infrastructure. The Indian Railways were reorganized into six zone systems under his direction: Central, Eastern, Northern, North-eastern, Southern, and Western.
Jawaharlal Nehru
A prominent leader of the Indian National Congress, Jawaharlal Nehru served as the Defence Minister of India under his own government. He took the charge of Defence Minister on 10 February 1953 and served in three terms for 2 years and 80 days between 1953 and 1962. Born on 14 November 1889 in Allahabad, he was raised in rich residences, notably the opulent Anand Bhavan mansion, in a privileged environment. The middle of the 20th century saw the rise to prominence of Jawaharlal Nehru, an anti-colonial patriot, secular humanist, social democrat, politician, and writer from India. A renowned writer, his works from behind bars include The Discovery of India (1946), Glimpses of Global History (1934), An Autobiography (1936), and Letters from a Parent to His Daughter (1929). Even though Nehru was opposed to fighting, he oversaw the battles against Pakistan in Kashmir and thereafter deployed forces to take Hyderabad in 1948 and Goa in 1961.
In October 1907, Nehru enrolled at Trinity College in Cambridge, where he later earned an undergraduate program in natural science in 1910. Nehru proceeded to London and registered in the Inner Temple Inn in order to pursue legal study in 1910. Nehru sought to establish a career as a lawyer after arriving back in India in August 1912 by registering as an attorney at the Allahabad High Court. During the start of the non-cooperation campaign in 1920, Nehru made his first substantial national contribution. He was the protest’s leader and was detained in 1921 on suspicion of anti-government activity. Nehru was instrumental in shaping the globalist perspective of the Indian independence movement.
Kailash Nath Katju
Under the cabinet of Jawaharlal Nehru, Kailash Nath Katju was appointed as the 4th Defence Minister of India and he controlled the ministry of defense for 2 years and 20 days from 10 January 1955 to 30 January 1957. Born on 17 June 1887 in Madhya Pradesh, he came from a family of Kashmiri Pandits and he earned his graduation degree from Forman Christian College in Lahore in 1905. Later, he pursued his law and master’s degree from Allahabad University in 1907. After the Attainment of independence, Katju occupied a number of important political positions, including the governor of West Bengal and Orissa. He was appointed to the Lok Sabha in 1951 from the Mandsaur seat, and in 1951 he became the Law Minister in Jawaharlal Nehru’s government. Furthermore, he was in charge of administrative management, housing, communications, strategic planning and collaboration, and anti-corruption ministries. In addition, he served as Madhya Pradesh’s Chief Minister from 31 January 1957 until 11 March 1962.
V. K. Krishna Menon
Coming from the Indian National Congress, V. K. Krishna Menon was appointed as the 5th Defence Minister of India and he held the administration of the defense ministry for 5 years and 197 days from 17 April 1957 to 31 October 1962 under Jawaharlal Nehru’s cabinet. Born on 3 May 1896 in Thiruvangad Thalassery, he completed his graduation in History and Politics from the Presidency College in Chennai. He enthusiastically supported Annie Besant and the Home Rule Movement while a student at the Madras Law College, when he became immersed in Theosophy. Menon, a reporter and the chairman of the India League from 1928 to 1947, emerged as an ardent supporter of India’s independence. He was also good friends with Jawaharlal Nehru, a renowned Indian nationalist politician, and later prime minister. Menon, a reporter and the chairman of the India League from 1928 to 1947, emerged as an ardent supporter of India’s independence. He was also good friends with Jawaharlal Nehru, a renowned Indian nationalist politician, and later prime minister.
Menon agreed to take charge of the Indian mission to the UN in 1949 and served in this capacity until 1962. He built up a track record for genius at the UN by repeatedly coming up with beautiful responses to difficult global political problems, such as the Korean peace initiative, the Indo-China truce, the impasse in the disarmament negotiations, and the French exit from the UN over Algeria.
Compared to his successors, Menon was a far more well-known and influential person, and he carried with him a level of political, national, and international scrutiny that India’s military had never seen. He overhauled a large portion of India’s military leadership architecture and stopped the seniority system for promotions inside the infantry in favor of a performance-based system.
Yashwantrao Chavan
Under the government of the Indian National Congress, Yashwantrao Chavan was elected as the 6th Defence Minister of India and he held that position for 3 years and 364 days from 14 November 1962 to 13 November 1966. Born on 12 March 1913 in the Satara district of Maharashtra, he completed his graduation in Economics and Political Science from Rajaram College, Kolhapur and then he went on to Pune Law College in order to obtain a Law degree. Under the brief Charan Singh administration in 1979, his final prominent governmental position was that of Deputy Prime Minister of India. He was widely recognized as the Leader of the Common People and was a successful person in Congress, cooperatives, social activism, and writing. With his lectures and writings, he promoted democratic socialism and had an important impact in creating cooperatives in Maharashtra to benefit farmers. The distinction of being the first Maharashtrian politician to have handled the four most significant ministries in the Union government—Home, Foreign Affairs, Defense, and Finance—belongs to Yashwantrao Chavan. Yashwantrao was referred to as Pratishivaji or New Shivaji throughout the 1960s and early 1970s, as he reached the height of his achievement and prominence.
Swaran Singh
Under the government of Indira Gandhi, Swaran Singh was appointed as the 7th Defence Minister of India and he served the nation as a defense minister for 4 years and 276 days in two terms between 13 November 1966 and 1 December 1975. Born on 19 August 1907 in the Jalandhar district of Punjab, he came from a Jat family and completed his graduation in Physics from a Government college in Lahore. He entered the Akali Dal political group in the 1930s, and in the early 1940s, he was a key player in the agreement made between the Akali Dal and the Indian National Congress group. The Panthic Party was established shortly prior to the 1946 elections, with Baldev Singh functioning as both its founder and vice president. In 1976, under the emergency situation, Sardar Swaran Singh functioned as the leader of the panel tasked with researching the Indian Constitution. Indira Gandhi set up a group under the leadership of Sardar Swaran Singh shortly after the national emergency was imposed to look into the potential of modifying the law in accordance with previous experiences.
Jagjivan Ram
Under the government of Indira Gandhi and Morarji Desai, Jagjivan Ram was picked as the 8th Defence Minister of India and he served the nation as a defense minister for two terms. His first term began on 27 June 1970 when Indira Gandhi was the Prime Minister and was retained in the position for 4 years and 105 days till 10 October 1974. In his 2nd term as a Defence Minister, he took charge on 24 March 1977 under the flag of the Janata Party and held the position for 2 years and 126 days till 28 July 1979. Born on 5 April 1908 in Bihar, he earned his graduate degree in Science from the University of Calcutta. He was handed the ministry of Labour in 1946 and held that position in Jawaharlal Nehru’s temporary administration and the First Indian Cabinet that succeeded.
He is recognized for establishing the foundations for various labor welfare initiatives in India. The Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 and Bangladesh’s liberation were both battled and won while he served as defense minister. Following coordinating a Mazdoor Rally in Kolkata in 1928, in which some 50,000 individuals took part, an anonymous man attracted Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose’s eye. The person also actively participated in rescue efforts after the 1934 Nepal-Bihar earthquake and helped to found the All-India Depressed Classes League, a 1935 organization devoted to achieving equality for lower castes. In addition, he also functioned as a minister in the field of Food and Agriculture, Communications, Transport & Railways, etc.
Indira Gandhi
Indira Gandhi, a prominent political figure of the Indian National Congress, handled the charge of 9th Defence Minister of India and she served the nation as a defense minister for 2 years and 20 days in two terms between 1 December 1975 and 15 January 1982. Indira Gandhi’s appointment as India’s first female defense minister was a significant turning point for women in Indian politics. Indira Gandhi was in charge of upgrading and reforming India’s military assets under her leadership. India’s success in the 1971 war with Pakistan was probably thanks to Indira Gandhi’s diplomacy. In the end, India benefited from Indira Gandhi’s brave choice to declare war on Pakistan. Born on 19 November 1917 in Allahabad, she was recognized as the first-ever woman who served as an Indian PM. She imposed a state of Emergency in the country during his leadership and later was rejected by the Indian people in the general elections in 1977. Mrs. Gandhi served as prime minister for 15 years and 350 days total, making her the second-longest sitting leader in the nation behind her father. From 1947 through 1964, Nehru was the prime minister of India, and Gandhi acted as his companion and traveled with him on several of his international excursions. After her father passed away in 1964, Lal Bahadur Shastri, who had taken over as prime minister, assigned her to the position of minister of communication and television. Mrs. Gandhi beat her challenger Morarji Desai in the Congress Party’s parliamentary leadership contest and as a result, Gandhi also replaced Shastri as prime minister after Shastri’s unfortunate loss in January 1966.
Bansi Lal
Under the government of Indira Gandhi, Bansi Lal was elected as the 10th Defence Minister of India and he served the nation as a defense minister for 1 year and 94 days from 21 December 1975 to 24 March 1977. Born on 26 August 1927 in the Bhiwani district of Punjab, Bansi Lal received his graduate degree in arts before going on to the Punjab University Law College in Jalandhar to earn his LLB. He acquired honorary doctorates in law and science from Kurukshetra University and Haryana Agricultural University in 1972, respectively. He worked as the chief minister of Haryana four times: in 1968, 1972, 1986, and 1996. On May 31, 1968, at age 41, he was officially named the CM of Haryana, establishing him as the nation’s youngest chief minister at the time. Lal was widely recognized when the Emergency was proclaimed in 1975 by Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. The Shah Committee of Investigation, which was constituted at the conclusion of the Emergency, concluded that Bansi Lal regularly abused his authority figures for private gain. Sanjay Gandhi’s favorite endeavor, the Maruti Car venture, was also brought to Haryana by Bansi Lal.
Chidambaram Subramaniam
Under the governance of Charan Singh, Chidambaram Subramaniam was appointed as the 11th Defence Minister of India and he served the nation as a defense minister for 170 days from 28 July 1979 to 14 January 1980. Born on 30 January 1910 in Senguttaipalayam village of Tamil Nadu, he earned his graduate degree in Physics from Presidency College, Chennai. Afterward, he went on to Madras Law College in order to receive his Law degree. Together with Periyasaamy Thooran, K. M. Ramasami Gounder, O. V. Alagesan, and Justice Palanisami, he launched Vanamalar Sangam and produced a journal from Gobichettipalayam named Pithan throughout his undergraduate years. Subramaniam participated actively in the civil disobedience campaign and was detained in 1942 as part of the Quit India Movement. He then won a seat in the Constituent Assembly and participated in the drafting of the Indian Constitution. From 1952 until 1962, he functioned as the Madras State’s Minister of Education, Law, and Finance.
Subramaniam, together with M. S. Swaminathan and B. Sivaraman, designed India’s contemporary agricultural strategic plan after the accomplishment of their initiative that resulted in a historic wheat productivity in 1972, known as the Indian Green Revolution. The Indian Government showed respect and honored him by awarding him with the Bharat Ratna title in 1998. His achievements were recognized by the government of India with the introduction of a commemorative coin and a postage stamp in 2010.
Ramaswamy Venkataraman
Under the government of Indira Gandhi, Ramaswamy Venkataraman was appointed as the 12th Defence Minister of India and he served the nation as a defense minister for 2 years and 200 days from 15 January 1982 to 2 August 1984. Born on 4 December 1910 in Rajamadam village of Tamil Nadu, he received his graduate degree from the National College, Tiruchirappalli, and later went on to Loyola College in Madras to obtain his Law degree. He was imprisoned for two years as a consequence of his direct involvement in the Indian National Congress’s famed Quit India Campaign in 1942, which was a protest against the British government. After winning the Lok Sabha in 1980, Venkataraman was nominated Union Minister of Finance in the administration of Smt. Indira Gandhi. In this capacity, he is recognized for launching India’s missile technology. He transferred A P J Abdul Kalam from space exploration to the missile program and unified the whole missile system, renaming it the Integrated Guided Missile Development Program. His subsequent roles as vice president and president of India, beginning in 1987, witnessed him interact with four prime ministers and nominate three of them: V. P. Singh, Chandra Shekhar, and P. V. Narasimha Rao.
Shankarrao Chavan
Under the government of Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi, Shankarrao Chavan rose to the power of Defence Minister of India and he performed as a defense minister for 151 days from 2 August 1984 to 31 December 1984. Born on 14 July 1920, he has also served as the CM of the Maharashtra state and also worked as a minister of Finance under the leadership of P. V. Narasimha Rao. Under the leadership of Rajiv Gandhi, he was raised to the power of the Home Minister of India and served the nation as a home minister from 31 December 1984 to 12 March 1986. After passing his schooling, he joined Madras University to earn his bachelor’s degree in Arts and then studied Law at Osmania University.
P. V. Narasimha Rao
Under the government of Rajiv Gandhi, P. V. Narasimha Rao was first elected as the 14th Defence Minister of India and he served the nation as a defense minister in three terms for 3 years and 243 days between 1 January 1985 and 16 May 1996. Born on 28 June 1921 in Laknepally village of present-day Telangana, he earned his master’s degree in Law from Hislop College which comes under Nagpur University. Rao remained engaged in the Indian freedom struggle as a revolutionary leader, and made is political debut as an Indian National Congressperson following the country’s independence. He is remembered as the diplomat, politician, and barrister from India who presided as India’s ninth prime minister from 1991 to 1996. He was the inaugural prime minister from South India and the second person to reach that position from a region other than Hindi-speaking India, his election to the position was historically momentous. He oversaw a massive financial development, a significant bureaucracy, and various domestic events that had an impact on India’s national security. A powerful earthquake in Latur, Maharashtra, in 1993 left approximately 10,000 civilians dead and countless others homeless. Many praised Rao for organizing significant humanitarian assistance to comfort vulnerable individuals and for his plans for economic rehabilitation. He did this by utilizing contemporary resources and technological advancements.
Rajiv Gandhi
Under the government of the Indian National Congress, Rajiv Gandhi took the charge of the 15th Defence Minister of India and he worked as a defense minister for 269 days from 25 September 1985 to 24 January 1987. Born on 20 August 1944 in the Bombay presidency, he assumed the post of sixth Prime Minister of India from 1984 to 1989 when he was 40 years old and thus became the youngest PM. From the beginning, he was not so much interested in study and politics and that is why he left Engineering two times in his life. Rajiv Gandhi’s attempts to update and bolster India’s military capabilities as well as to encourage friendly relations with its borders were mostly what distinguished his time as defense minister.
He managed the introduction of various new weapons programs, such as the T-72 tanks, Jaguar fighter planes, and Bofors howitzers. To improve homegrown missile tech, he also started the Integrated Guided Missile Development Plan (IGMDP). He established the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) to construct and improve the roads along the borders after realizing that India’s border should be strengthened. In Himachal Pradesh, he also started work on the Atal Tunnel, the longest highway tunnel above 10,000 feet in the world.
Vishwanath Pratap Singh
Under the government of Rajiv Gandhi and V. P. Singh, Vishwanath Pratap Singh rose to the power of Defence Minister of India two times. He served as the 16th Defence Minister of India for 1 year and 56 days in two terms between 24 January 1987 and 10 November 1990. Born on 25 June 1931 in Allahabad, he earned his BA in Arts and Law degree from Allahabad University. He also remained in the position of Indian Prime Minister from 1989 to 1990. He made his political debut by entering the Indian National Congress and later became MLA from the UP assembly. He also played the role of Commerce minister from 1976 to 1977 and later became the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh. Singh served in a variety of ministerial positions under the Rajiv Gandhi government, notably as Minister of Finance and Minister of Defence. When the Bofors controversy surfaced while Singh was serving as the defense minister, he announced his resignation from the defense ministry. He merged numerous Janata Party groups to create the Janata Dal party in 1988. Singh grew increasingly India’s eighth prime minister when the National Front, with the help of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), established the country’s government following the 1989 elections.
The Mandal Commission report was executed for India’s lower castes under his time as prime minister, which sparked widespread opposition to the action.
K. C. Pant
Under the government of Rajiv Gandhi, K. C. Pant was appointed as the 17th Chief Minister of India and he served the nation as a defense minister for 2 years and 232 days from 13 April 1987 to 1 December 1989. Born on 10 August 1931 in Bhowali, he earned his graduate degree from Lucknow University and later visited Germany for higher studies. He assumed his maiden cabinet position as the minister of state for Home Affairs at the beginning of the 1970s following securing the Lok-Sabha legislative election from Nainital and resolving two extremely important concerns of that time. His primary projects were updating and creating self-sufficient the Defense Department’s facilities and amenities as well as strengthening international connections with the US, Russia, and other nations. In 1985, while serving as Education Minister, he developed a number of significant campaigns, including Education for the Blind, the Mass Literacy Campaign, the initiative to delink jobs from degrees, the Education for All program, Model Schools for all the municipalities, and several significant employment initiatives.
Chandra Shekhar
When Samajwadi Janata Party came to power, Chandra Shekhar took the charge of 18th Defence Minister in his own hand and served the nation as a Defence Minister for 223 days from 10 November 1990 to 21 June 1991. Born on 17 April 1927 in a village in Uttar Pradesh, he came from a Rajput family and earned his postgraduate degree in political science from the Allahabad University. He was the leader of a small Janata Dal group that received external assistance from the Congress political party to run the government. He was the country’s first prime minister who did not previously work in a political position. The majority of people considered his prime ministership to be a “lame duck” and “puppetry,” and it was constituted with the least number of MPs in the Lok Sabha.
He oversaw the Ministry of Defence while serving as the Indian Prime Minister, together with the Ministries of Home Affairs, Information, and Broadcasting. He only served as defense minister for seven months, during which period the defense budget was not presented. He seemed to have had diseases for an extended period of time and had been undergoing care at the Apollo Hospital in New Delhi but on July 8, 2007, he passed away.
Sharad Pawar
Coming from the Indian National Congress, Sharad Pawar was appointed as the 19th Chief Minister of India under the government of P. V. Narasimha Rao. He served as a defense minister of India for 1 year and 253 days from 26 June 1991 to 6 March 1993. Born on 12 December 1940 in Baramati, he completed his graduate degree from the Brihan Maharashtra College of Commerce. He remained in the position of CM of Maharashtra four times in his political life and served as the head of the Maha Vikas Aghadi government which was the alliance of Shivsena, NCP, and INC. In his non-political roles, Pawar headed the International Cricket Council from 2010 to 2012 and functioned as the president of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) from 2005 to 2008. He has also performed the role of president for the Mumbai Cricket Association for 4 years from 2013 to 2017. On the proposal of the BJP-led Narendra Modi cabinet, Pawar gained the Padma Vibhushan in 2017.
Pramod Mahajan
Under the government of Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Pramod Mahajan was appointed as the 20th Defence Minister of India and he served the nation as a defense minister for a short period of 16 days from 16 May 1996 to 1 June 1996. Born on 30 October 1949 in Mahbubnagar, Hyderabad, he completed his graduate degree in Physics and Journalism, then later earned his master’s degree in Political Science. Mahajan had been a Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) participant from the time he was a young boy at the start of his political career, but in 1970 and 1971, while working as a sub-editor for the RSS’s Marathi magazine Tarun Bharat, he became more deeply engaged. He joined the protest against the Emergency that had been established by Indira Gandhi and was detained in the central prison in Nashik till it was abolished. He was related to a cadre of very new “technocratic” politicians and was a second-generation Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) politician. With the BJP’s aged upper commanders’ approaching departure, he was engaged in a political battle for the party’s leadership at the moment of his death.
Mulayam Singh Yadav
Coming from the Samajwadi Party, Mulayam Singh Yadav was raised to the power of the 21st Defence Minister of India and he ruled the defense ministry for 1 year and 291 days from 1 June 1996 to 19 March 1998. Born on 22 November 1939 in Saifai, UP, he was a graduate student of political science. Yadav worked in the education industry before getting involved in politics. He made his political debut by winning the Vidhan Sabha election in 1967 and became an MLA. He was also detained for 19 months in jail because of his involvement in the campaign against Emergency. The seasoned politician was a well-known character in Indian politics throughout his lifetime, and political operatives and supporters frequently alluded to him as Netaji and Dhartiputra. When the Deve Gowda government took office in 1996, Yadav was appointed India’s Defense Minister after winning the Mainpuri constituency’s election to the eleventh National assembly.
George Fernandes
Under the government of Atal Bihari Vajpayee, George Fernandes was elected as the 22nd Defence Minister of India and he controlled the ministry of defense for 5 years and 211 days in two terms between 19 March 1998 and 22 May 2004. Born on 3 June 1930 in Mangalore, he was a revolutionary socialist, politician, and columnist. He was a member of parliament in the Lok Sabha for more than 30 years, beginning in Bombay in 1967 and ending in 2009, primarily covering Bihar seats. He laid the foundation of the Samata Party and was a significant figure in the Janata Dal. He had a number of governmental responsibilities, such as those related to railroads, manufacturing, and defense. The Indian government honored him in 2020 by giving him the Padam Vibhushan award.
Jaswant Singh
Under the government of Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Jaswant Singh was appointed as the 23rd Defence Minister of India and he held the position of Defence Minister for 219 days from 16 March 2001 to 21 October 2001. Born on 3 January 1938 in a Jasol village in Rajasthan, he completed his graduation from National Defence Academy and then functioned as a Captain of the Central India Horse unit in the Indian Army. He was involved in the Indo-Pak war of 1965 where he served as a commander. Under the cabinet of Atal Bihari Vajpayee, he handled External Affairs, Finance, and later Defence minister. He emerged as one of the BJP’s co-founders and one of the country’s longest-serving lawmakers, having participated in the Lok Sabha or the Rajya Sabha practically nonstop between 1980 and 2014.
Pranab Mukherjee
Under the government of Manmohan Singh, Pranab Mukherjee was raised to the power of the 24th Defence Minister of India and served the nation as a defense minister for 2 years and 157 days from 22 May 2004 to 26 October 2006. Born on 11 December 1935 in Mirati village in Bengal, he came from a Brahmin Bengali family and his father was a significant person in the Indian freedom struggle and acted as an Indian National Congress legislator in the West Bengal Legislative Council from 1952 to 1964. He was a well-known leader and diplomat who presided as India’s 13th president from 2012 to 2017. In his five-decade career as a politician, Mukherjee held many cabinet positions in the Indian government while serving as a supreme commander of the Indian National Congress. The Bharat Ratna, India’s highest civilian accolade, was bestowed to him in 2019 by Ram Nath Kovind.
A. K. Antony
Under the government of Manmohan Singh, A. K. Antony was appointed as the 25th Defence Minister of India and he served the nation as a defense minister for 7 years and 212 days from 26 October 2006 to 26 May 2014. Born on 28 December 1940 in Alappuzha, Kerala, he holds the record of serving the nation as a defense minister for the most years. He is a son of Arackaparambil Kurien Pillai and Aleykutty Kurian who completed his schooling at Holy Family Boys High school and then joined Maharaja’s College, Ernakulam in order to get his BA degree in Arts. He later went on to Government Law College, Ernakulam for studying Law. Under the direction of M. A. John, Antony got into politics as a youth president in Cherthala Taluk (Alleppey District) and as a member of the Kerala Students Union. He rose to the power of CM when he was only 36 years and this made him the youngest chief minister of the state, lasting from 27 April 1977 until 27 October 1978. During his tenure as a Defence Minister, as a result of his “Buy and Make Indian” push, billions of dollars worth of international weaponry acquisitions were canceled, yet at the same time he slowed down home manufacture by limiting expenditures.
Arun Jaitley
Under the government of Narendra Modi, Arun Jaitley was appointed as the 26th Defence Minister of India and he served the nation as a defense minister for 341 days in two terms between 26 May 2014 and 3 September 2017. Born on 28 December 1952 in Delhi, he joined St. Xavier’s Senior Secondary School in Delhi to complete his schooling and then earned his graduate degree in Commerce from Delhi University in 1973. Later went on to the Faculty of Law, University of Delhi in order to get his Law degree. Jaitley was elected to the presidency of the Delhi University Students Union in 1974 after functioning as the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) youth leader on the Delhi University Campus in the 1970s. He spent a total of 19 months in precautionary custody during the Internal Emergency (1975–1977), when constitutional freedoms were curtailed.
Manohar Parrikar
Under the government of Narendra Modi, Manohar Parrikar was appointed as the 27th Defence Minister of India who served the nation as a defense minister for 2 years and 124 days from 9 November 2014 to 13 March 2017. Born on 13 December 1955 in Mapusa in Goa, he earned his Engineering degree in Metallurgical from IIT, Bombay. According to Parrikar’s personal confession, he was hesitant to flee Goa and travel to Delhi in November 2014 after the BJP secured both Lok Sabha constituencies there. But, Prime Minister Narendra Modi was able to convince him to enter the national administration. Arun Jaitley, who had been serving as the Ministry’s extra responsibility until that point, was replaced as the Minister of Defense by Parrikar in November 2014. His selection as the party’s nominee for the appointed Rajya Sabha member from Uttar Pradesh allowed his entrance into the legislature.
Nirmala Sitharaman
Under the government of Narendra Modi, Nirmala Sitharaman was chosen as the 28th Defence Minister of India and she controlled the administration of the defense ministry for 1 year and 269 days from 3 September 2017 to 30 May 2019. Born on 18 August 1959 in Madurai, Tamil Nadu, she got his bachelor’s degree in Economics from Seethalakshmi Ramaswami College and then obtain his master’s degree and M.Phil in Economics from Jawaharlal Nehru University, Delhi in 1984. Sitharaman began working for the BJP in 2006, was named the group’s spokeswoman in 2010, was made a deputy secretary in Narendra Modi’s administration in 2014, and was chosen as an Andhra Pradesh representative to the Rajya Sabha in June of the same year. She oversaw the Indian Air Force’s 2019 Balakot Air Strike when she was India’s Minister of Defense.
Rajnath Singh
Under the government of Narendra Modi, Rajnath Singh is raised to the power of the 29th Defence Minister of India and currently handling the ministry of defense. Born on 10 July 1951 in Bhabhaura village of UP, he came from a Rajput family and completed his post-graduation in Physics from Gorakhpur University. He functioned as the BJP government’s minister for agriculture, education, home, and transportation. He also held the office of chief minister of the state of Uttar Pradesh. Since 1964, when he was 13 years old, Singh had been a part of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and had stayed a member of the group. In 1972, he was appointed General Secretary of the Mirzapur branch of RSS. After two years, during the year 1974, he got into politics and was appointed the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad’s organizing secretary in Gorakhpur. He was chosen to serve as secretary of the Bharatiya Jana Sangh, the organization that preceded the Bharatiya Janata Party, in Mirzapur in 1974. After becoming defense minister, he concentrated mostly on raising the country’s defense spending, reducing the purchase of weapons from other countries, and turning the country into an arms manufacturer with a thriving industry.