1947 TO 2022 PRIME MINISTERS OF INDIA findoutabout.in

Table of Contents

INTRODUCTION

PRIME MINISTERS OF INDIA

A prime minister, premier, or chief of the cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system.

Article 75 of the Indian Constitution mentions that a Prime Minister is one who is appointed by the President. There is no specific procedure for his election or appointment.

India has had 15 Prime Ministers to date (excluding the interim Prime MInisters), with Uttar Pradesh being the state which has given the most number of Prime Ministers

Who is eligible to be a Prime Minister?

To become an Indian prime minister one has to be

A citizen of India.
A member of either Rajya Sabha or Lok Sabha
He should have completed his 30 years if he is a member of the Rajya Sabha or can be 25 years of age if he is a member of the Lok Sabha

1947-2022 LIST OF PRIME MINISTERS OF INDIA

SR.NO	Prime Minister	Term of the Office	REMARKS
1	Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru	15th Aug 1947- 27th May 1964	The first & longest-serving PM of India who is also the first to die in office
2	Gulzarilal Nanda (interim)	27th May 1964- 9th Jun 1964	First acting PM of India
3	Lal Bahadur Shastri	9th June 1964 -11th January 1966	He was also famous for his slogan ‘Jai Jawan Jai Kisan’ during the Indo-Pak war, in 1965
4	Gulzarilal Nanda	11th January 1966- 24th January 1966
5	Indira Gandhi	24th January 1966- 24th March 1977	The first female Prime Minister of India
6	Morarji Desai	24th March 1977- 28th July 1979	Oldest PM of India (81 years old) and the first to resign from office
7	Charan Singh	28th July 1979- 14th January 1980	The only PM who did not face the Parliament
8	Indira Gandhi	14th January 1980- 31st October 1984	First lady PM who served the second term
9	Rajiv Gandhi	31st October 1984- 2nd December 1989	Youngest to become PM (40 years old)
10	Vishwa Pratap Singh	2nd December 1989- 10th November 1990	First PM to step down after a vote of no confidence
11	Chandra Shekhar	10th November 1990-21st June 1991	Belonged to Samajwadi Janata Party
12	P. V Narasimha Rao	21st June 1991- 16th May 1996	First PM from south India
13	Atal Bihari Vajpayee	16th May 1996-1st June 1996	PM for the shortest term
14	H. D Deve Gowda	1st June 1996- 21st April 1997	Belonged to Janata Dal
15	Inder Kumar Gujral	21st April 1997- 18th March 1998
16	Atal Bihari Vajpayee	18th March 1998- 22nd May 2004	A first non-congress PM who completed his full term as PM of India
17	Dr. Manmohan Singh	22nd May 2004 -17th May 2014	First Sikh PM of India
18	Narendra Modi	26th May 2014 – Till date	4th Prime Minister of India who served 2 consecutive terms

Power and Function of Prime Minister

The Prime Minister of India serves the country by following various functions. He performs his functions taking responsibilities as:

The leader of the Country: The Prime Minister of India is the Head of the Government of India.
Portfolio allocation: The Prime Minister has the authority to assign portfolios to the Ministers.
Chairman of the Cabinet: The Prime Minister is the chairman of the cabinet and presides over the meetings of the Cabinet. He can impose his decision if there is a crucial opinion difference among the members.
Official Representative of the country: Prime minister represents the country for high-level international meetings
The link between the President and the Cabinet: The Prime Minister acts as the link between President and cabinet. He communicates all decisions of the Cabinet to the President which is related to the administration of the affairs of the Union and proposals for legislation.
Head: The Prime Minister is the head of the Nuclear Command Authority, NITI Aayog, Appointments Committee of the Cabinet, Department of Atomic Energy, Department of Space and Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions.
Chief Advisor: He acts as the chief advisor to the President

Position of the Prime Minister

Right from the days of the first Prime Minister Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, the Prime Minister is treated at a much higher pedestal. His preeminence rests on his commanding position in the Cabinet, coupled with the fact that he is the leader of the majority party.

All these positions of power when combined in one person make him rank much above an ordinary Minister. The death or resignation of the Prime Minister automatically brings about the dissolution of the Council of Ministers. It generates a vacuum. The demise, resignation, or dismissal of a Minister creates only a vacancy that the Prime Minister may or may not like to fill. The Government cannot function without a Prime Minister but the absence of a Minister can be easily compensated.