India has seen many defence ministers since its independence in 1947 and each defence minister has their own importance in framing of India’s defence policy. Here we bring you the complete Defence Ministers of India list along with their basic details such as term of office, tenure and political party name with which they were associated.
Baldev Singh became the 1st Defence Minister of India & served for more than 4 years. Famous personalities like Jawahar Lal Nehru, V. K. Krishna Menon, Yashwantrao Chavan, Swaran Singh, Jagjivan Ram, P. V. Narasimha Rao, Indira Gandhi, Sharad Pawar, Pramod Mahajan, Mulayam Singh Yadav, George, Fernandis also served as the defence minister of India. In this article, we will describe some of the most interesting information about our defence ministers.
List of Defence Ministers of India
Here is the complete list of defence ministers in India from the year 1947 to 2022:-
| Name | Term of Office | Tenure | Party Name |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baldev Singh | 15 August 1947 to 13 May 1952 | 4 years, 272 days | Indian National Congress |
| N. Gopalaswami Ayyangar | 13 May 1952 to 10 February 1953 | 273 days | Indian National Congress |
| Jawaharlal Nehru | 10 February 1953 to 10 January 1955 | 1 year, 334 days | Indian National Congress |
| Kailash Nath Katju | 10 January 1955 to 30 January 1957 | 2 years, 20 days | Indian National Congress |
| Jawaharlal Nehru | 30 January 1957 to 17 April 1957 | 2 years, 97 days | Indian National Congress |
| V. K. Krishna Menon | 17 April 1957 to 31 October 1962 | 5 years, 197 days | Indian National Congress |
| Jawaharlal Nehru | 31 October 1962 to 14 November 1962 | 14 days | Indian National Congress |
| Yashwantrao Chavan | 14 November 1962 to 13 November 1966 | 3 years, 364 days | Indian National Congress |
| Swaran Singh | 13 November 1966 to 27 June 1970 | 3 years, 226 days | Indian National Congress |
| Jagjivan Ram | 27 June 1970 to 10 October 1974 | 4 years, 105 days | Indian National Congress |
| Swaran Singh | 10 October 1974 to 1 December 1975 | 1 year, 52 days | Indian National Congress |
| Indira Gandhi | 1 December 1975 to 20 December 1975 | 19 days | Indian National Congress |
| Bansi Lal | 21 December 1975 to 24 March 1977 | 1 year, 94 days | Indian National Congress |
| Jagjivan Ram | 24 March 1977 to 28 July 1979 | 2 years, 126 days | Janata Party |
| Chidambaram Subramaniam | 28 July 1979 to 14 January 1980 | 170 days | Indian National Congress (U) |
| Indira Gandhi | 14 January 1980 to 15 January 1982 | 2 years, 1 day | Indian National Congress |
| Ramaswamy Venkataraman | 15 January 1982 to 2 August 1984 | 2 years, 200 days | Indian National Congress |
| Shankarrao Chavan | 2 August 1984 to 31 December 1984 | 151 days | Indian National Congress |
| P. V. Narasimha Rao | 1 January 1985 to 25 September 1985 | 267 days | Indian National Congress |
| Rajiv Gandhi | 25 September 1985 to 24 January 1987 | 269 days | Indian National Congress |
| Vishwanath Pratap Singh | 24 January 1987 to 12 April 1987 | 78 days | Indian National Congress |
| K. C. Pant | 13 April 1987 to 1 December 1989 | 2 years, 232 days | Indian National Congress |
| Vishwanath Pratap Singh | 2 December 1989 to 10 November 1990 | 343 days | Janata Dal |
| Chandra Shekhar | 10 November 1990 to 21 June 1991 | 223 days | Samajwadi Janata Party (Rashtriya) |
| P. V. Narasimha Rao | 21 June 1991 to 26 June 1991 | 5 days | Indian National Congress |
| Sharad Pawar | 26 June 1991 to 6 March 1993 | 1 year, 253 days | Indian National Congress |
| P. V. Narasimha Rao | 6 March 1993 to 16 May 1996 | 3 years, 71 days | Indian National Congress |
| Pramod Mahajan | 16 May 1996 to 1 June 1996 | 16 days | Bharatiya Janata Party |
| Mulayam Singh Yadav | 1 June 1996 to 19 March 1998 | 1 year, 291 days | Samajwadi Party |
| George Fernandes | 19 March 1998 to 16 March 2001 | 2 years, 362 days | Samata Party |
| Jaswant Singh | 16 March 2001 to 21 October 2001 | 219 days | Bharatiya Janata Party |
| George Fernandes | 21 October 2001 to 22 May 2004 | 2 years, 214 days | Janata Dal (United) |
| Pranab Mukherjee | 22 May 2004 to 26 October 2006 | 2 years, 157 days | Indian National Congress |
| A. K. Antony | 26 October 2006 to 26 May 2014 | 7 years, 212 days | Indian National Congress |
| Arun Jaitley | 26 May 2014 to 9 November 2014 | 167 days | Bharatiya Janata Party |
| Manohar Parrikar | 9 November 2014 to 13 March 2017 | 2 years, 124 days | Bharatiya Janata Party |
| Arun Jaitley | 13 March 2017 to 3 September 2017 | 174 days | Bharatiya Janata Party |
| Nirmala Sitharaman | 3 September 2017 to 30 May 2019 | 1 year, 269 days | Bharatiya Janata Party |
| Rajnath Singh | 30 May 2019 – Incumbent | 3 years, 35 days | Bharatiya Janata Party |
Defence Ministers of India – FAQ’s
Who was the first defence minister of India
Baldev Singh was the first defence minister of independent India.
What was the tenure of Mulayam Singh Yadav as Defence Minister
Mulayam Singh Yadav became the defence minister from 1 June 1996 to 19 March 1998 and his tenure in office was 1 year 291 days.
Who was the longest serving defence minister of India
A.K. Antony from 26 October 2006 to 26 May 2014. His total tenure was 7 years 212 days.
Who was the shortest serving defence minister of India
Pramod Mahajan from 16 May 1996 to 1 June 1996 (16 days).
Official Website for Ministry of Defence – https://www.mod.gov.in/