Political

Name Elections
No. Portrait CM Term of office party Refs
(Birth–Death); Constituency (Lok Sabha)
(Alliance)

1 1952 (1st)

Indian
15 August 27 May
2 1957 (2nd) National
1947 1964 [†]
Congress

Jawaharlal Nehru 3 1962 (3rd)

1 (1889–1964)
[32]

MP for Phulpur

Indo-Pakistani War of 1947; created Planning Commission of India and initiated Five-year plan to increase government investment in
agriculture and industry; launched programmes to build irrigation canals, dams and spread the use of fertilizers to increase agricultural
production; oversaw widespread poverty and unemployment, even with improvements in agriculture and infrastructure; oversaw
establishment of All India Institute of Medical Sciences,Indian Institutes of Technology and Indian Institutes of Management; criminalised
caste discrimination and increased the legal rights and social freedoms of women; pioneered the policy of non-alignment and co-founded
the Non-Aligned Movement; Sino-Indian War; signed the Indus Waters Treaty; granted asylum to the Dalai Lama; oversawliberation of Goa.
 Indian
27 May 9 June
 —  – (3rd) National
Gulzarilal Nanda[j] 1964 1964
Congress
— (1898–1998)
[33]

MP for Sabarkantha

Served as caretaker Prime Minister until the election of Lal Bahadur Shastri.

Indian
9 June 11 January
4  – (3rd) National
1964 1966 [†]
Lal Bahadur Shastri Congress
2 (1904–1966)
[34]

MP for Allahabad
Indo-Pakistani War of 1965; pushed for Green Revolution in India and Operation Flood; The National Dairy Development Board was formed;
died from a heart attack at a summit in Tashkent.

Gulzarilal Nanda 11 Indian

24 January
— (1898–1998)  — January  – (3rd) National [33]
1966
MP for Sabarkantha 1966 Congress
 Served as caretaker Prime Minister once again, until Indira Gandhi was chosen as the new leader.

 – (3rd)
5
24 1967 (4th) Indian
24 March
January National
1977
Indira Gandhi 1966 Congress
3 (1917–1984) 6 1971 (5th) [35]

MP for Rae Bareli

Nationalized banks; won the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971, which resulted in the formation of Bangladesh; signed theShimla Agreement; tested
the first nuclear weapon with Smiling Buddha; initiated Green Revolution in India; imposedstate of emergency 1975–1977.

24 March 28 July Janata

4 Morarji Desai 7 1977 (6th) [36]
1977 1979  [RES]
Party
(1896–1995)
 Improved relations with Pakistan, China and the United States; softened its relationship with the Soviet Union; launched Sixth Five-Year
MP for Surat Plan, aiming to boost agricultural production and rural industries; the plan proved unsuccessful leading to resurging inflation, fuel shortages,
unemployment and poverty; lost many MPs from Janata Party, including his rival Charan Singh, which led to his resignation.

Janata
Party
28 July 14 January (Secular)
8  – (6th)
1979 1980  [RES]
with Indian
Charan Singh
National
5 (1902–1987)
[37]

Congress
MP for Baghpat

Initiated high level diplomatic relations with Israel; lost support of Congress, which led to his resignation without even a single session of Lok
Sabha.
 Indian
14
31 October National
9 January 1980 (7th)
Indira Gandhi 1984  [†]
Congress
1980 [§]
(3) (1917–1984) (Indira) [38]

MP for Rae Bareli

Operation Blue Star, which subsequently led to her assassination.

31 Indian
2 December
10 October 1984 (8th) National
1989
1984 Congress
Rajiv Gandhi
6 (1944–1991)
[39]

MP for Amethi
1984 anti-Sikh riots; significantly reduced License Raj; expanded telecommunications in India; signed the Indo-Sri Lanka Peace
Accord; Bofors scandal; nullified the Supreme Court's judgement on Shah Bano case; removed locks illegally on disputed Babri
Mosque structure which would later be demolished; Diplomatic Ties with Palestine Established
 2
10 Janata Dal
Decembe
11 November 1989 (9th) (National
r
1990  [NC]
Front)
V. P. Singh 1989
7 (1931–2008)
[40]

MP for Fatehpur
Negotiated kidnapping of Mufti Mohammad Sayeed's daughter by Kashmiri sepratists; visited Golden Temple to ask for forgiveness
for Operation Blue Star; withdrew IPKF from Sri Lanka; initiated fixed quota/reservation for all public sector jobs as per recommendation
from Mandal Commission; Ram Janmabhoomi agitation and subsequent loss ofvote of no confidence because of it.

Samajwadi
10 Janata
Novembe 21 June Party
12  – (9th)
r 1991 with Indian
Chandra Shekhar
1990 National
8 (1927–2007)
[41]
Congress
MP for Ballia

Resigned due to accusations of spying on former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, and subsequent withdrawal of Congress'
support; Assassination of Rajiv Gandhi.
 Indian
21 June 16 May
13 1991 (10th) National
1991 1996
P. V. Narasimha Rao Congress
9 (1921–2004)
[42]

MP for Nandyal
Initiated Economic liberalisation in India; SEBI Act 1992; formation of National Stock Exchange of India; 1993 Bombay bombings; Diplomatic
Ties with Israel Established; introduced TADA; Demolition of Babri Masjid.

Bharatiya
16 May 1 June
14 1996* (11th) Janata
Atal Bihari Vajpayee 1996 1996 [RES]
Party
10 (1924– )
[43]

MP for Lucknow

*Hung parliament. Was in power for only 13 days, after BJP could not gather enough support from other parties to form a majority.

11 H. D. Deve Gowda 1 June 21 April Janata Dal [43]

15 1996* (11th)
(1933– ) 1996 1997 [RES] (United Front)
MP (Rajya Sabha) for Karnataka

*Hung parliament. After a failed attempt of forming a BJP government, Congress refused to form a government and instead supported a
 minority United Front coalition led by Janata Dal. President of China Jiang Zemin begins the first visit by a Chinese head of state to India;
initiates President's rule in Gujarat.

21 April 19 March Janata Dal

16  – (11th)
Inder Kumar Gujral 1997 1998 (United Front)

12 (1919–2012)
[44]

MP (Rajya Sabha) for Bihar

Fodder scam; Jain Commission.

(10) Atal Bihari Vajpayee 17 1998 (12th) Bharatiya [45]

(1924– ) Janata
MP for Lucknow 19 March 22 May Party
1998  [§]
2004 (National
18 1999 (13th) Democratic
Alliance)

Pokhran nuclear tests; Kargil War; Kargil coffin scam; National Highway Development Project; Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak
Yojana; POTA; Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan; 2001 Indian Parliament attack and Operation Parakram; Indian Airlines Flight 814 hijack; 2002
 Gujarat violence; National Technical Research Organisation.

19 2004 (14th) Indian
National
22 May Congress
Incumbent
2004 (United
20 2009 (15th) Progressive
Dr. Manmohan Singh Alliance)
13 (1932– )
[46]

MP (Rajya Sabha) for Assam

Indo-US civilian nuclear agreement; won the 2008 Lok Sabha vote of confidence; US $ 1 Trillion Economy milestone reached; Economic
crisis of 2008; National Rural Employment Guarantee Act; Right to Information Act; National Rural Health Mission; Unique ID Project
(Aadhar); 2008 Mumbai attacks and subsequent Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act; Creation of National Investigation Agency to focus on
terrorism related cases; 2G spectrum scam; Right to Education Act; Anna Hazare's Jan Lokpal agitation; Coalgate; Direct Benefit
Transfer; Delhi gang rape and subsequent Sexual Harassment Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal Act; Choppergate.

See also