Every prime minister of India, from Nehru to Modi
The top 3 according to 14 votes from people: Jawaharlal Nehru · Gulzarilal Nanda · Lal Bahadur Shastri. (Updated Jul 4, 2025.)
Since independence in 1947 India has had 14 prime ministers, or 15 counting Gulzarilal Nanda, who was twice acting prime minister. Here they all are in the order in which they first took office, with their party and terms. Jawaharlal Nehru served the longest, and Narendra Modi has been in his third term since 2024.
Automatically translated (original in हिन्दी). See the original
Top 15
-
1
Jawaharlal Nehru
Indian National Congress. 15 August 1947 – 27 May 1964. India's first and longest-serving prime minister; died in office.
-
2
Gulzarilal Nanda
Indian National Congress. 27 May 1964 – 9 June 1964; 11 January 1966 – 24 January 1966. Twice acting prime minister, after the deaths of Nehru and Shastri.
-
3
Lal Bahadur Shastri
Indian National Congress. 9 June 1964 – 11 January 1966. Coined the slogan "Jai Jawan, Jai Kisan"; died in Tashkent.
-
4
Indira Gandhi
Indian National Congress. 24 January 1966 – 24 March 1977; 14 January 1980 – 31 October 1984. India's only woman prime minister; assassinated in 1984.
-
5
Morarji Desai
Janata Party. 24 March 1977 – 28 July 1979. The first prime minister not from the Congress party.
-
6
Charan Singh
Janata Party (Secular). 28 July 1979 – 14 January 1980. Never faced a confidence vote in the Lok Sabha.
-
7
Rajiv Gandhi
Indian National Congress. 31 October 1984 – 2 December 1989. Became India's youngest prime minister at the age of 40.
-
8
Chandra Shekhar
Samajwadi Janata Party. 10 November 1990 – 21 June 1991. Led a minority government with outside support from Congress.
-
9
P. V. Narasimha Rao
Indian National Congress. 21 June 1991 – 16 May 1996. Prime minister during the 1991 economic liberalisation.
-
10
Atal Bihari Vajpayee
Bharatiya Janata Party. 16 May 1996 – 1 June 1996; 19 March 1998 – 22 May 2004. His first term lasted only 16 days; the BJP's first prime minister.
-
11
I. K. Gujral
Janata Dal. 21 April 1997 – 19 March 1998. Known for the "Gujral Doctrine" in foreign policy.
-
12
V. P. Singh
Janata Dal. 2 December 1989 – 10 November 1990. Led the National Front government; implemented the Mandal Commission recommendations.
-
13
H. D. Deve Gowda
Janata Dal. 1 June 1996 – 21 April 1997. Led the United Front government.
-
14
Narendra Modi
Bharatiya Janata Party. 26 May 2014 – present. Won the 2014, 2019 and 2024 elections; third term since June 2024.
-
15
Manmohan Singh
Indian National Congress. 22 May 2004 – 26 May 2014. The first Sikh prime minister; led two UPA governments.
How is this ranking ordered? By people's votes: each ▲ adds a point and each ▼ takes one away. Anyone can vote and add what is missing.
Is something missing?
Comments (0)
No comments yet. Be the first!