Minister of External Affairs (India)

{{short description|Head of the Ministry of External Affairs}} {{Distinguish|text=the Foreign Secretary of India}} {{EngvarB|date=April 2020}} {{Use dmy dates|date=February 2022}} {{Infobox official post | post = Minister of External Affairs of the Republic of India | body = | native_name = {{transliteration|hi|Videś Mantrī}} | flag = Flag of India.svg | flagsize = 110px | flagcaption = Flag of India | insignia = Ministry of External Affairs India.svg | insigniasize = 200px | insigniacaption = Emblem of India | image = Subrahmanyam Jaishankar (2024) (cropped).jpg | imagesize = 200px | alt = | incumbent = S. Jaishankar | incumbentsince = {{start date|2019|05|30|df=y}} | type = | status = | department = Ministry of External Affairs | style = | member_of = Union Cabinet of India Cabinet Committee on Security | reports_to = President of India Prime Minister of India Parliament of India | residence = | seat = | nominator = | appointer = President of India | appointer_qualified = on the recommendation of the Prime Minister | termlength = Five years (renewable) | termlength_qualified = | constituting_instrument = | precursor = | formation = {{start date|1947|df=y}} | first = Jawaharlal Nehru | last = | abolished = | succession = | unofficial_names = Foreign Minister | deputy = Minister of State for External Affairs | salary = | abbreviation = MEA | website = }} The '''Minister of External Affairs''' (or simply the '''External Affairs Minister'''; ''Hindi:'' '''''Videsh Mantri''''') is the head of the Ministry of External Affairs of the Government of India. One of the senior-most offices in the union cabinet, the chief responsibility of the minister of external affairs is to represent the government of India in the international community and advance its interests on the global stage. As such, the minister plays an important role in shaping and directing the country's foreign policy. Typically, the minister is assisted by one or more junior ministers, known as Ministers of State (MoS) for External Affairs.

The role, created when India became independent in August 1947 as '''Minister of External and Commonwealth Affairs''', was held by India's first prime minister, Jawaharlal Nehru throughout his 17-year premiership; Nehru remains the longest serving external affairs minister followed by S. Jaishankar, the incumbent minister. It was renamed Minister of External Affairs upon India's becoming of a republic in 1950.

Several other Prime Ministers have since held the additional charge as the Minister of External Affairs, but never has any other cabinet minister held additional charge of the office—although during Nehru's premiership, V. K. Krishna Menon was acknowledged as ''de facto'' minister of external affairs beyond his official designation as defence minister. There have been a number of external affairs ministers who went on to become the prime minister like Atal Bihari Vajpayee, P. V. Narasimha Rao and I. K. Gujral. Two former career-diplomats have served as ministers of external affairs, including Natwar Singh (2004{{ndash}}2005) who served as India's ambassador to Poland and as high commissioner to Pakistan, and the current minister S. Jaishankar who retired as the foreign secretary. Two other ministers, M. C. Chagla and I. K. Gujral also served as ambassadors, with Chagla serving as India's ambassador to the United States and high commissioner to the United Kingdom, while Gujral served as ambassador to the Soviet Union.

The current minister of external affairs is S. Jaishankar, who succeeded Sushma Swaraj of the Bharatiya Janata Party on 30 May 2019.

==Cabinet Ministers==

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" ! rowspan="2" colspan="2"| Portrait ! rowspan="2" style="width:18em" |Minister {{small|(Birth-Death) Constituency}} ! colspan="3" |Term of office ! rowspan="2" style="width:8em" |Political party ! rowspan="2" style="width:6em" | Ministry ! rowspan="2" colspan="2" |Prime Minister |- ! style="width:9em"| From ! style="width:9em"| To ! style="width:6em"| Period |- ! colspan="10"| Minister of External and Commonwealth Affairs |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | 70px | '''Jawaharlal Nehru''' {{small|(1889{{ndash}}1964) MCA for United Provinces}} (Prime Minister) | 15 August 1947 | 26 January 1950 | {{ayd|15 Aug 1947|26 Jan 1950}} | Indian National Congress | Nehru I | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | style="width:7em"| Self |- ! colspan="10"| Minister of External Affairs |- | rowspan="4" bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | rowspan="4"| 70px | rowspan="4"| '''Jawaharlal Nehru''' {{small|(1889{{ndash}}1964) MCA for United Provinces (till 1952) MP for Phulpur (from 1952)}} (Prime Minister) | rowspan="4"| 26 January 1950 | rowspan="4"| 27 May 1964{{ref label|†|†|†}} | rowspan="4"| {{ayd|1950|1|26|1964|5|27}} | rowspan="12"| Indian National Congress | Nehru I | rowspan="4" bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | rowspan="4"| Self |- | Nehru II |- | Nehru III |- | Nehru IV |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | 70px | '''Gulzarilal Nanda''' {{small|(1898{{ndash}}1998) MP for Sabarkantha}} (Prime Minister) | 27 May 1964 | 9 June 1964 | {{ayd|1964|5|27|1964|6|9}} | Nanda I | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | Self |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | 70px | '''Lal Bahadur Shastri''' {{small|(1904{{ndash}}1966) MP for Allahabad}} (Prime Minister) | 9 June 1964 | 17 July 1964 | {{ayd|1964|6|9|1964|7|17}} | rowspan="2"| Shastri | rowspan="2" bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | rowspan="2"| Lal Bahadur Shastri |- | rowspan="3" bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | rowspan="3"| 70px | rowspan="3"| '''Swaran Singh''' {{small|(1907{{ndash}}1994) MP for Jullundur}} | 17 July 1964 | 11 January 1966 | rowspan="3"| {{ayd|1964|7|17|1966|11|14}} |- | 11 January 1966 | 24 January 1966 | Nanda II | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | Gulzarilal Nanda |- | 24 January 1966 | 14 November 1966 | rowspan="2"| Indira I | rowspan="4" bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | rowspan="8"| Indira Gandhi |- | rowspan="2" bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | rowspan="2"| 70px | rowspan="2"| '''M. C. Chagla''' {{small|(1900{{ndash}}1981) Rajya Sabha MP for Maharashtra}} | 14 November 1966 | 13 March 1967 | rowspan="2"| {{ayd|1966|11|14|1967|9|5}} |- | 13 March 1967 | 5 September 1967 | rowspan="4"| Indira II |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | 70px | '''Indira Gandhi''' {{small|(1917{{ndash}}1984) MP for Rae Bareli}} (Prime Minister) | 6 September 1967 | 13 February 1969 | {{ayd|1967|9|6|1969|2|13}} |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress (R)}}"| | 70px | '''Dinesh Singh''' {{small|(1925{{ndash}}1995) MP for Pratapgarh}} | 14 February 1969 | 27 June 1970 | {{ayd|1969|2|14|1970|6|27}} | rowspan="4"| Indian National Congress (R) | rowspan="4" bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress (R)}}"| |- | rowspan="2" bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress (R)}}"| | rowspan="2"| 70px | rowspan="2"| '''Swaran Singh''' {{small|(1907{{ndash}}1994) MP for Jullundur}} | 27 June 1970 | 18 March 1971 | rowspan="2"| {{ayd|1970|6|27|1974|10|10}} |- | 18 March 1971 | 10 October 1974 | rowspan="2"| Indira III |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress (R)}}"| | 70px | '''Yashwantrao Chavan''' {{small|(1913{{ndash}}1984) MP for Satara}} | 10 October 1974 | 24 March 1977 | {{ayd|1974|10|10|1977|3|24}} |- | style="background:{{party color|Janata Party}}"| | 70px | '''Atal Bihari Vajpayee''' {{small|(1924{{ndash}}2018) MP for New Delhi}} | 26 March 1977 | 28 July 1979 | {{ayd|1977|3|26|1979|7|28}} | Janata Party | Desai | style="background:{{party color|Janata Party}}"| | Morarji Desai |- | style="background:{{party color|Janata Party (Secular)}}; color:white"| | 70px | '''Shyam Nandan Prasad Mishra''' {{small|(1920{{ndash}}2004) MP for Begusarai}} | 28 July 1979 | 14 January 1980 | {{ayd|1979|7|28|1980|1|14}} | Janata Party (Secular) | Charan | style="background:{{party color|Janata Party (Secular)}}"| | Charan Singh |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | 70px | '''P. V. Narasimha Rao''' {{small|(1921{{ndash}}2004) MP for Hanamkonda}} | 14 January 1980 | 19 July 1984 | {{ayd|1980|1|14|1984|7|19}} | rowspan="10"| Indian National Congress | rowspan="3"| Indira IV | rowspan="3" bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | rowspan="3"| Indira Gandhi |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | 70px | '''Indira Gandhi''' {{small|(1917{{ndash}}1984) MP for Medak}} (Prime Minister) | 19 July 1984 | 31 October 1984{{note label|†|†|†}} | {{ayd|1984|7|19|1984|10|31}} |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress (I)}}"| | 70px | '''Shankarrao Chavan''' {{small|(1920{{ndash}}2004) MP for Nanded}} (Minister without portfolio assisting the Prime Minister) | 19 July 1984 | 2 August 1984 | {{ayd|19 Jul 1984|2 Aug 1984}} |- | rowspan="2" bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | rowspan="2"| 70px | rowspan="2"| '''Rajiv Gandhi''' {{small|(1944{{ndash}}1991) MP for Amethi}} (Prime Minister) | 31 October 1984 | 31 December 1984 | rowspan="2"| {{ayd|1984|10|31|1985|9|24}} | Rajiv I | rowspan="7" bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | rowspan="7"| Rajiv Gandhi |- | 31 December 1984 | 24 September 1985 | rowspan="6"| Rajiv |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | 70px | '''Bali Ram Bhagat''' {{small|(1922{{ndash}}2011) MP for Arrah}} | 24 September 1985 | 12 May 1986 | {{ayd|1985|9|24|1986|5|12}} |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress (I)}}"| | 70px | '''P. Shiv Shankar''' {{small|(1929{{ndash}}2017) Rajya Sabha MP for Gujarat}} | 12 May 1986 | 22 October 1986 | {{ayd|1986|5|12|1986|10|22}} |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress (I)}}"| | 70px | '''N. D. Tiwari''' {{small|(1925{{ndash}}2018) Rajya Sabha MP for Uttar Pradesh}} | 22 October 1986 | 25 July 1987 | {{ayd|1986|10|22|1987|7|25}} |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress (I)}}"| | 70px | '''Rajiv Gandhi''' {{small|(1944{{ndash}}1991) MP for Amethi}} (Prime Minister) | 25 July 1987 | 25 June 1988 | {{ayd|1987|7|25|1988|6|25}} |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress (I)}}"| | 70px | '''P. V. Narasimha Rao''' {{small|(1921{{ndash}}2004) MP for Ramtek}} | 25 June 1988 | 2 December 1989 | {{ayd|1988|6|25|1989|12|2}} |- | style="background:{{party color|Janata Dal}}"| | 70px | '''V. P. Singh''' {{small|(1931{{ndash}}2008) MP for Fatehpur}} (Prime Minister) | 2 December 1989 | 5 December 1989 | {{ayd|1989|12|2|1989|12|5}} | rowspan="2"| Janata Dal | rowspan="2"| Vishwanath | rowspan="2" style="background:{{party color|Janata Dal}}"| | rowspan="2"| V. P. Singh |- | style="background:{{party color|Janata Dal}}"| | 70px | '''Inder Kumar Gujral''' {{small|(1919{{ndash}}2012) MP for Jalandhar}} | 5 December 1989 | 10 November 1990 | {{ayd|1989|12|5|1990|11|10}} |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Samajwadi Janata Party (Rashtriya)}}"| | 70px | '''Chandra Shekhar''' {{small|(1927{{ndash}}2007) MP for Ballia}} (Prime Minister) | 10 November 1990 | 21 November 1990 | {{ayd|1990|11|10|1990|11|21}} | rowspan="3"| Samajwadi Janata Party (Rashtriya) | rowspan="3"| Chandra Shekhar | rowspan="3" bgcolor="{{party color|Samajwadi Janata Party (Rashtriya)}}"| | rowspan="3"| Chandra Shekhar |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Samajwadi Janata Party (Rashtriya)}}"| | 70px | '''Vidya Charan Shukla''' {{small|(1929{{ndash}}2013) MP for Mahasamund}} | 21 November 1990 | 20 February 1991 | {{ayd|1990|11|21|1991|2|20}} |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Samajwadi Janata Party (Rashtriya)}}"| | 70px | '''Chandra Shekhar''' {{small|(1927{{ndash}}2007) MP for Ballia}} (Prime Minister) | 20 February 1991 | 21 June 1991 | {{ayd|1991|2|20|1991|6|21}} |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | 70px | '''Madhavsinh Solanki''' {{small|(1927{{ndash}}2021) Rajya Sabha MP for Gujarat}} | 21 June 1991 | 31 March 1992 | {{ayd|1991|6|21|1992|3|31}} | rowspan="4"| Indian National Congress | rowspan="4"| Rao | rowspan="4" bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | rowspan="4"| P. V. Narasimha Rao |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | 70px | '''P. V. Narasimha Rao''' {{small|(1921{{ndash}}2004) MP for Nandyal}} (Prime Minister) | 31 March 1992 | 18 January 1993 | {{ayd|1992|3|31|1993|1|18}} |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | 70px | '''Dinesh Singh''' {{small|(1925{{ndash}}1995) Rajya Sabha MP for Uttar Pradesh}} | 18 January 1993 | 10 February 1995 | {{ayd|1993|1|18|1995|2|10}} |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress (I)}}"| | 70px | '''Pranab Mukherjee''' {{small|(1935{{ndash}}2020) Rajya MP for West Bengal}} | 10 February 1995 | 16 May 1996 | {{ayd|1995|2|10|1996|5|16}} |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Bharatiya Janata Party}}"| | 70px | '''Atal Bihari Vajpayee''' {{small|(1924{{ndash}}2018) MP for Lucknow}} (Prime Minister) | 16 May 1996 | 21 May 1996 | {{ayd|1996|5|16|1996|5|21}} | rowspan="2"| Bharatiya Janata Party | rowspan="2"| Vajpayee I | rowspan="2" bgcolor="{{party color|Bharatiya Janata Party}}"| | rowspan="2"| Atal Bihari Vajpayee |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Bharatiya Janata Party}}"| | 70px | '''Sikander Bakht''' {{small|(1918{{ndash}}2004) Rajya Sabha MP for Madhya Pradesh}} | 21 May 1996 | 1 June 1996 | {{ayd|1996|5|21|1996|6|1}} |- | rowspan="2" style="background:{{party color|Janata Dal}}"| | rowspan="2"| 70px | rowspan="2"| '''Inder Kumar Gujral''' {{small|(1919{{ndash}}2012) Rajya Sabha MP for Bihar}} (Prime Minister from 21 April 1997) | 1 June 1996 | 21 April 1997 | rowspan="2"| {{ayd|1996|6|1|1998|3|18}} | rowspan="2"| Janata Dal | Deve Gowda | style="background:{{party color|Janata Dal}}"| | H. D. Deve Gowda |- | 21 April 1997 | 19 March 1998 | Gujral | style="background:{{party color|Janata Dal}}"| | Self |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Bharatiya Janata Party}}"| | 70px | '''Atal Bihari Vajpayee''' {{small|(1924{{ndash}}2018) MP for Lucknow}} (Prime Minister) | 19 March 1998 | 5 December 1998 | {{ayd|1998|3|19|1998|12|5}} | rowspan="4"| Bharatiya Janata Party | rowspan="2"| Vajpayee II | rowspan="4" bgcolor="{{party color|Bharatiya Janata Party}}"| | rowspan="4"| Atal Bihari Vajpayee |- | rowspan="2" bgcolor="{{party color|Bharatiya Janata Party}}"| | rowspan="2"| 70px | rowspan="2"| '''Jaswant Singh''' {{small|(1938{{ndash}}2020) Rajya Sabha MP for Rajasthan}} | 5 December 1998 | 13 October 1999 | rowspan="2"| {{ayd|1998|12|5|2002|7|1}} |- | 13 October 1999 | 1 July 2002 | rowspan="2"| Vajpayee III |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Bharatiya Janata Party}}"| | 70px | '''Yashwant Sinha''' {{small|(born 1937) MP for Hazaribagh}} | 1 July 2002 | 22 May 2004 | {{ayd|2002|7|1|2004|5|22}} |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | 70px | '''Natwar Singh''' {{small|(1931{{ndash}}2024) Rajya Sabha MP for Rajasthan}} | 23 May 2004 | 6 November 2005 | {{ayd|2004|5|23|2005|11|6}} | rowspan="5"| Indian National Congress | rowspan="3"| Manmohan I | rowspan="5" bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | rowspan="5"| Manmohan Singh |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | 70px | '''Manmohan Singh''' {{small|(1932{{ndash}}2024) Rajya Sabha MP for Assam}} (Prime Minister) | 6 November 2005 | 24 October 2006 | {{ayd|2005|11|6|2006|10|24}} |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | 70px | '''Pranab Mukherjee''' {{small|(1935{{ndash}}2020) MP for Jangipur}} | 24 October 2006 | 22 May 2009 | {{ayd|2006|10|24|2009|5|22}} |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | 70px | '''S. M. Krishna''' {{small|(1932{{ndash}}2024) Rajya Sabha MP for Karnataka}} | 23 May 2009 | 28 October 2012 | {{ayd|2009|5|23|2012|10|28}} | rowspan="2"| Manmohan II |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | 70px | '''Salman Khurshid''' {{small|(born 1953) MP for Farrukhabad}} | 28 October 2012 | 26 May 2014 | {{ayd|2012|10|28|2014|5|26}} |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Bharatiya Janata Party}}"| | 70px | '''Sushma Swaraj''' {{small|(1952{{ndash}}2019) MP for Vidisha}} | 26 May 2014 | 30 May 2019 | {{ayd|2014|5|26|2019|5|30}} | rowspan="3"| Bharatiya Janata Party | Modi I | rowspan="3" bgcolor="{{party color|Bharatiya Janata Party}}"| | rowspan="3"| Narendra Modi |- | rowspan="2" bgcolor="{{party color|Bharatiya Janata Party}}"| | rowspan="2"| 70px | rowspan="2"| '''S. Jaishankar''' {{small|(born 1955) Rajya Sabha MP for Gujarat}} | rowspan="2"| 30 May 2019 | rowspan="2"| Incumbent | rowspan="2"| {{ayd|2019|5|30}} | Modi II |- | Modi III |- |}

== Ministers of state ==

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" ! rowspan="2" colspan="2"| Portrait ! rowspan="2" style="width:18em" |Minister {{small|(Birth-Death) Constituency}} ! colspan="3" |Term of office ! rowspan="2" style="width:8em" |Political party ! rowspan="2" style="width:6em" | Ministry ! rowspan="2" colspan="2" |Prime Minister |- ! style="width:9em"| From ! style="width:9em"| To ! style="width:6em"| Period |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | 70px | '''Charu Chandra Biswas''' {{small|(1888{{ndash}}1960)}} | 13 May 1950 | 13 May 1952 | {{ayd|13 May 1950|13 May 1952}} | rowspan="8"| Indian National Congress | Nehru I | rowspan="3" bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | rowspan="3" style="width:7em"| Jawaharlal Nehru |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | 70px | '''Syed Mahmud''' {{small|(1889–1971) MP for Gopalganj}} | 7 December 1954 | 17 April 1957 | {{ayd|7 Dec 1954|17 Apr 1957}} | Nehru II |- | rowspan="4" bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | rowspan="4"| 70px | rowspan="4"| '''Lakshmi N. Menon''' {{small|(1899{{ndash}}1994) Rajya Sabha MP for Bihar}} | rowspan="4"| 16 April 1962 | rowspan="4"| 24 January 1966 | rowspan="4"| {{ayd|1962|4|16|1966|1|24}} | Nehru IV |- | Nanda I | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | Gulzarilal Nanda |- | Shastri | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | Lal Bahadur Shastri |- | Nanda II | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | Gulzarilal Nanda |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | 70px | '''Dinesh Singh''' {{small|(1925{{ndash}}1995) Rajya Sabha MP for Uttar Pradesh}} | 24 January 1966 | 13 March 1967 | {{ayd|1966|1|24|1967|3|13}} | Indira I | rowspan="2" bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | rowspan="3"| Indira Gandhi |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | 70px | '''Bali Ram Bhagat''' {{small|(1922{{ndash}}2011) MP for Arrah}} | 14 November 1967 | 14 February 1969 | {{ayd|1967|11|14|1969|2|14}} | Indira II |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress (R)}}"| | 70px | '''Surendra Pal Singh''' {{small|(1917{{ndash}}2009) MP for Bulandshahr}} | 5 February 1973 | 10 October 1974 | {{ayd|1973|2|5|1974|10|10}} | Indian National Congress (R) | Indira III | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress (R)}}"| |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Janata Party}}"| | 70px | '''Samarendra Kundu''' {{small|(1930{{ndash}}1993) MP for Balasore}} | 14 August 1977 | 28 July 1979 | {{ayd|1977|8|14|1979|7|28}} | Janata Party | Desai | bgcolor="{{party color|Janata Party}}"| | Morarji Desai |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress (Urs)}}"| | | '''Bedabrata Barua''' {{small|(born 1928) MP for Kaliabor}} | 4 August 1979 | 14 January 1980 | {{ayd|1979|8|4|1980|1|14}} | Indian National Congress (Urs) | Charan | bgcolor="{{party color|Janata Party (Secular)}}"| | Charan Singh |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | 70px | '''A. A. Rahim''' {{small|(1920{{ndash}}1995) MP for Chirayinkil}} | 2 September 1982 | 31 October 1984 | {{ayd|1982|9|2|1984|10|31}} | rowspan="9"| Indian National Congress (I) | rowspan="2"| Indira IV | rowspan="2" bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress (I)}}"| | rowspan="2"| Indira Gandhi |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress (I)}}"| | 70px | '''Ram Niwas Mirdha''' {{small|(1924{{ndash}}2010) Rajya Sabha MP for Rajasthan}} | 2 August 1984 | 31 October 1984 | {{ayd|1984|8|2|1984|10|31}} |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress (I)}}"| | 70px | '''A. A. Rahim''' {{small|(1920{{ndash}}1995) MP for Chirayinkil}} | rowspan="2"| 4 November 1984 | rowspan="2"| 31 December 1984 | rowspan="2"| {{ayd|1984|11|4|1984|12|31}} | rowspan="2"| Rajiv I | rowspan="7" bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress (I)}}"| | rowspan="7"| Rajiv Gandhi |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress (I)}}"| | 70px | '''Ram Niwas Mirdha''' {{small|(1924{{ndash}}2010) Rajya Sabha MP for Rajasthan}} |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress (I)}}"| | 70px | '''Khurshed Alam Khan''' {{small|(1919{{ndash}}2013) MP for Farrukhabad}} | 31 December 1984 | 25 September 1985 | {{ayd|1984|12|31|1985|9|25}} | rowspan="5"| Rajiv II |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress (I)}}"| | 70px | '''K. R. Narayanan''' {{small|(1921{{ndash}}2005) MP for Ottapalam}} | 25 September 1985 | 22 October 1986 | {{ayd|1985|9|25|1986|10|22}} |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress (I)}}"| | 70px | '''Eduardo Faleiro''' {{small|(born 1940) MP for Mormugao}} | 12 May 1986 | 14 February 1988 | {{ayd|1986|5|12|1988|2|14}} |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress (I)}}"| | 70px | '''Natwar Singh''' {{small|(1929–2024) MP for Bharatpur}} | 22 October 1986 | 2 December 1989 | {{ayd|1986|10|22|1989|12|2}} |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress (I)}}"| | | '''Kamla Kant Tiwari''' {{small|MP for Buxar}} | 25 June 1988 | 22 April 1989 | {{ayd|1988|6|25|1989|4|22}} |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian People's Front}}"| | 70px | '''Hari Kishore Singh''' {{small|(1934{{ndash}}2013) MP for Sheohar}} | 23 April 1990 | 10 November 1990 | {{ayd|1990|4|23|1990|11|10}} | Indian People's Front | Vishwanath | bgcolor="{{party color|Janata Dal}}"| | Vishwanath Pratap Singh |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | 70px | '''Eduardo Faleiro''' {{small|(born 1940) MP for Mormugao}} | 21 June 1991 | 18 January 1993 | {{ayd|1991|6|21|1993|1|18}} | rowspan="3"| Indian National Congress | rowspan="3"| Rao | rowspan="3" bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | rowspan="3"| P. V. Narasimha Rao |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress (I)}}"| | 70px | '''R. L. Bhatia''' {{small|(1920{{ndash}}2021) MP for Amritsar}} | 2 July 1992 | 16 May 1993 | {{ayd|1992|7|2|1993|5|16}} |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress (I)}}"| | 70px | '''Salman Khurshid''' {{small|(born 1953) MP for Farrukhabad}} | 18 January 1993 | 16 May 1996 | {{ayd|1993|1|18|1996|5|16}} |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Samajwadi Party}}"| | | '''Saleem Iqbal Shervani''' {{small|(born 1953) MP for Badaun}} | rowspan="2"| 9 June 1997 | rowspan="2"| 19 March 1998 | rowspan="2"| {{ayd|1997|4|21|1998|3|19}} | Samajwadi Party | rowspan="2"| Gujral | rowspan="2" bgcolor="{{party color|Janata Dal}}"| | rowspan="2"| Inder Kumar Gujral |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Janata Dal}}"| | | '''Kamala Sinha''' {{small|(1932{{ndash}}2014) Rajya Sabha MP for Bihar}} | Janata Dal |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Bharatiya Janata Party}}"| | 70px | '''Vasundhara Raje''' {{small|(born 1953) MP for Jhalawar}} | 20 March 1998 | 13 October 1999 | {{ayd|1998|3|20|1999|10|13}} | Bharatiya Janata Party | Vajpayee II | rowspan="6" bgcolor="{{party color|Bharatiya Janata Party}}"| | rowspan="6"| Atal Bihari Vajpayee |- | bgcolor="{{party color|All India Trinamool Congress}}"| | | '''Ajit Kumar Panja''' {{small|(1936{{ndash}}2008) MP for Calcutta North East}} | 13 October 1999 | 16 March 2001 | {{ayd|1999|10|13|2001|3|16}} | All India Trinamool Congress | rowspan="5"| Vajpayee III |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Bharatiya Janata Party}}"| | 70px | '''Krishnam Raju''' {{small|(1940{{ndash}}2022) MP for Narasapuram}} | 30 September 2000 | 22 July 2001 | {{ayd|2000|9|30|2001|7|22}} | Bharatiya Janata Party |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Jammu and Kashmir National Conference}}"| | 70px | '''Omar Abdullah''' {{small|(born 1970) MP for Srinagar}} | 22 July 2001 | 23 December 2002 | {{ayd|2001|7|22|2002|12|23}} | Jammu and Kashmir National Conference |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Janata Dal (United)}}"| | 70px | '''Digvijay Singh''' {{small|(1955{{ndash}}2010) MP for Banka}} | 1 July 2002 | 22 May 2004 | {{ayd|2002|7|1|2004|5|22}} | Janata Dal (United) |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Bharatiya Janata Party}}"| | 70px | '''Vinod Khanna''' {{small|(1946{{ndash}}2017) MP for Gurdaspur}} | 29 January 2003 | 22 May 2004 | {{ayd|2003|1|29|2004|5|22}} | Bharatiya Janata Party |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian Union Muslim League}}"| | 70px | '''E. Ahamed''' {{small|(1938{{ndash}}2017) MP for Ponnani}} | 23 May 2004 | 22 May 2009 | {{ayd|2004|5|23|2009|5|22}} | Indian Union Muslim League | rowspan="3"| Manmohan I | rowspan="6" bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | rowspan="6"| Manmohan Singh |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | 70px | '''Rao Inderjit Singh''' {{small|(born 1951) MP for Mahendragarh}} | 23 May 2004 | 29 January 2006 | {{ayd|2004|5|23|2006|1|29}} | rowspan="4"| Indian National Congress |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | 70px | '''Anand Sharma''' {{small|(born 1953) Rajya Sabha MP for Himachal Pradesh}} | 29 January 2006 | 22 May 2009 | {{ayd|2006|1|29|2009|5|22}} |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | 70px | '''Preneet Kaur''' {{small|(born 1944) MP for Patiala}} | 28 May 2009 | 26 May 2014 | {{ayd|2009|5|28|2014|5|26}} | rowspan="3"| Manmohan II |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | 70px | '''Shashi Tharoor''' {{small|(born 1956) MP for Thiruvananthapuram}} | 28 May 2009 | 19 April 2010 | {{ayd|2009|5|28|2010|4|19}} |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian Union Muslim League}}"| | 70px | '''E. Ahamed''' {{small|(1938{{ndash}}2017) MP for Malappuram}} | 19 January 2011 | 26 May 2014 | {{ayd|2011|1|19|2014|5|26}} | Indian Union Muslim League |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Bharatiya Janata Party}}"| | 70px | {{small|General}} '''V. K. Singh''' {{small|(Retd.)}} {{post-nominals|country=IND|PVSM|AVSM|YSM|ADC}} {{small|(born 1950) MP for Ghaziabad}} | 27 May 2014 | 30 May 2019 | {{ayd|2014|5|27|2019|5|30}} | rowspan="7"| Bharatiya Janata Party | rowspan="2"| Modi I | rowspan="7" bgcolor="{{party color|Bharatiya Janata Party}}"| | rowspan="7"| Narendra Modi |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Bharatiya Janata Party}}"| | 70px | '''M. J. Akbar''' {{small|(born 1951) Rajya Sabha MP for Madhya Pradesh}} | 5 July 2016 | 17 October 2018 | {{ayd|2016|7|5|2018|10|17}} |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Bharatiya Janata Party}}"| | 70px | '''V. Muraleedharan''' {{small|(born 1958) Rajya Sabha MP for Maharashtra}} | 31 May 2019 | 9 June 2024 | {{ayd|2019|5|31|2024|6|9}} | rowspan="3"| Modi II |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Bharatiya Janata Party}}"| | 70px | '''Meenakshi Lekhi''' {{small|(born 1967) MP for New Delhi}} | 7 July 2021 | 9 June 2024 | {{ayd|2021|7|7|2024|6|9}} |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Bharatiya Janata Party}}"| | 70px | '''Rajkumar Ranjan Singh''' {{small|(born 1952) MP for Inner Manipur}} | 7 July 2021 | 9 June 2024 | {{ayd|2021|7|7|2024|6|9}} |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Bharatiya Janata Party}}"| |70px | '''Kirti Vardhan Singh''' {{small|(born 1966) MP for Gonda}} | rowspan="2"| 10 June 2024 | rowspan="2"| Incumbent | rowspan="2"| {{ayd|10 Jun 2024}} | rowspan="2"| Modi III |- | bgcolor="{{party color|Bharatiya Janata Party}}"| | 70px | '''Pabitra Margherita''' {{small|(born 1974) Rajya Sabha MP for Assam}} |- |}

==Deputy ministers== {| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" ! rowspan="2" | {{Abbr|No.|Number}} ! rowspan="2" colspan="2"| Portrait ! rowspan="2" style="width:18em" |Minister {{small|(Birth-Death) Constituency}} ! colspan="3" |Term of office ! rowspan="2" style="width:8em" |Political party ! rowspan="2" style="width:6em" | Ministry ! rowspan="2" colspan="2"| Prime Minister |- ! style="width:8em"| From ! style="width:8em"| To ! style="width:6em"| Period |- ! colspan="11"| Deputy Minister of External Affairs and Commonwealth Relations |- ! 1 | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | 70px | '''B. V. Keskar''' {{small|(1903{{ndash}}1984) MCA for Madras}} | 7 December 1948 | 26 January 1950 | '''{{ayd|7 Dec 1948|26 Jan 1950}}''' | Indian National Congress | Nehru I | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | style="width:9em"| '''Jawaharlal Nehru''' |- ! colspan="11"| Deputy Minister of External Affairs |- ! (1) | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | 70px | '''B. V. Keskar''' {{small|(1903{{ndash}}1984) MCA for Madras}} | 31 January 1950 | 13 May 1952 | '''{{ayd|31 Jan 1950|13 May 1952}}''' | Indian National Congress | Nehru I | rowspan="7" bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | rowspan="7"| '''Jawaharlal Nehru''' |- ! colspan="9"| |- ! rowspan="2"| 2 | rowspan="2" bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | rowspan="2"| 70px | rowspan="2"| '''Anil Kumar Chanda''' {{small|(1906{{ndash}}1976) MP for Birbhum}} | 12 August 1952 | 17 April 1957 | rowspan="2"| '''{{ayd|12 Aug 1952|1 May 1957}}''' | rowspan="3"| Indian National Congress | Nehru II |- | 17 April 1957 | 1 May 1957 | rowspan="2"| Nehru III |- ! 3 | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | 70px | '''Lakshmi N. Menon''' {{small|(1899{{ndash}}1994) Rajya Sabha MP for Bihar}} | 17 April 1957 | 10 April 1962 | '''{{ayd|17 Apr 1957|10 Apr 1962}}''' |- ! colspan="9"| |- ! rowspan="4"| 4 | rowspan="4" bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | rowspan="4"| 70px | rowspan="4"| '''Dinesh Singh''' {{small|(1925{{ndash}}1995) MP for Pratapgarh}} | 8 May 1962 | 27 May 1964 | rowspan="4"| '''{{ayd|8 May 1962|24 Jan 1966}}''' | rowspan="4"| Indian National Congress | Nehru IV |- | 27 May 1964 | 9 June 1964 | Nanda I | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | '''Gulzarilal Nanda''' |- | 15 June 1964 | 11 January 1966 | Shastri | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | '''Lal Bahadur Shastri''' |- | 11 January 1966 | 24 January 1966 | Nanda II | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | '''Gulzarilal Nanda''' |- ! colspan="11"| |- ! rowspan="3"| 5 | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | rowspan="3"| 70px | rowspan="3"| '''Surendra Pal Singh''' {{small|(1917{{ndash}}2009) MP for Bulandshahr}} | rowspan="2"| 18 March 1967 | rowspan="2'| 18 March 1971 | rowspan="3"| '''{{ayd|18 Mar 1967|5 Mar 1973}}''' | Indian National Congress | rowspan="2"| Indira II | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress}}"| | rowspan="5"| '''Indira Gandhi''' |- | rowspan="2" bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress (R)}}"| | rowspan="4"| Indian National Congress (R) | rowspan="4" bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress (R)}}"| |- | 18 March 1971 | 5 February 1973 | rowspan="3"| Indira III |- ! colspan="7"| |- ! 6 | bgcolor="{{party color|Indian National Congress (R)}}"| | 70px | '''Bipinpal Das''' {{small|(1923{{ndash}}2005) Rajya Sabha MP for Assam}} | 17 October 1974 | 24 March 1977 | '''{{ayd|17 Oct 1974|24 Mar 1977}}''' |- ! colspan="11"| |- ! 7 | bgcolor="{{party color|Samajwadi Janata Party (Rashtriya)}}"| | 70px | '''Digvijay Singh''' {{small|(1955{{ndash}}2010) Rajya Sabha MP for Bihar}} | 28 November 1990 | 21 June 1991 | '''{{ayd|28 Nov 1990|21 Jun 1991}}''' | Samajwadi Janata Party (Rashtriya) | Chandra Shekhar | bgcolor="{{party color|Samajwadi Janata Party (Rashtriya)}}"| | '''Chandra Shekhar''' |- |}

== Length of Tenure == ===Cabinet Ministers=== {| class="wikitable sortable" style="line-height:1.4em; text-align:center" ! data-sort-type=number rowspan = "2" |# ! rowspan="2" |Name of Minister ! rowspan="2" colspan=2 |Party ! rowspan="2" |Terms ! colspan="2" |Length of term |- ! Longest tenure ! Total tenure |- ! 1 | Jawaharlal Nehru | {{Party name with color|Indian National Congress}} | 2 | 14 years, 121 days | 16 years, 285 days |- ! 2 | '''S. Jaishankar''' | {{Party name with color|Bharatiya Janata Party}} | '''2''' | '''{{ayd|2019|5|30}}''' | '''{{ayd|2019|5|30}}''' |- ! 3 | P. V. Narasimha Rao | {{Party name with color|Indian National Congress}} | 3 | 4 years, 187 days | 6 years, 275 days |- ! 4 | Swaran Singh | {{Party name with color|Indian National Congress}} | 5 | 4 years, 105 days | 6 years, 225 days |- ! 5 | Sushma Swaraj | {{Party name with color|Bharatiya Janata Party}} | 1 | 5 years, 4 days | 5 years, 4 days |- ! 6 | Pranab Mukherjee | {{Party name with color|Indian National Congress}} | 2 | 2 years, 210 days | 3 years, 305 days |- ! 7 | Jaswant Singh | {{Party name with color|Bharatiya Janata Party}} | 2 | 2 years, 262 days | 3 years, 209 days |- ! 8 | S. M. Krishna | {{Party name with color|Indian National Congress}} | 1 | 3 years, 158 days | 3 years, 158 days |- ! 9 | Dinesh Singh | {{Party name with color|Indian National Congress}} | 2 | 2 years, 23 days | 3 years, 156 days |- ! 10 | Atal Bihari Vajpayee |style="background-color:#8C5C7D"| |JP/BJP | 3 | 2 years, 124 days | 3 years, 25 days |- ! 11 | Inder Kumar Gujral | {{Party name with color|Janata Dal}} | 3 | 0 years, 340 days | 2 years, 266 days |- ! 12 | Yashwantrao Chavan | {{Party name with color|Indian National Congress (R)}} | 1 | 2 years, 165 days | 2 years, 165 days |- ! 13 | Yashwant Sinha | {{Party name with color|Bharatiya Janata Party}} | 1 | 1 years, 325 days | 1 years, 325 days |- ! 14 | Rajiv Gandhi | {{Party name with color|Indian National Congress}} | 3 | 0 years, 336 days | 1 year, 299 days |- ! 15 | Indira Gandhi | {{Party name with color|Indian National Congress}} | 2 | 1 years, 160 days | 1 years, 264 days |- ! 16 | Salman Khurshid | {{Party name with color|Indian National Congress}} | 1 | 1 years, 210 days | 1 years, 210 days |- ! 17 | Natwar Singh | {{Party name with color|Indian National Congress}} | 1 | 1 years, 167 days | 1 years, 167 days |- ! 18 | Manmohan Singh | {{Party name with color|Indian National Congress}} | 1 | 0 years, 352 days | 0 years, 352 days |- ! 19 | M. C. Chagla | {{Party name with color|Indian National Congress}} | 2 | 0 years, 176 days | 0 years, 295 days |- ! 20 | Madhavsinh Solanki | {{Party name with color|Indian National Congress}} | 1 | 0 years, 284 days | 0 years, 284 days |- ! 21 | N. D. Tiwari | {{Party name with color|Indian National Congress}} | 1 | 0 years, 276 days | 0 years, 276 days |- ! 22 | Bali Ram Bhagat | {{Party name with color|Indian National Congress}} | 1 | 0 years, 230 days | 0 years, 230 days |- ! 23 | Shyam Nandan Prasad Mishra | {{Party name with color|Janata Party (Secular)}} | 1 | 0 years, 170 days | 0 years, 170 days |- ! 24 | P. Shiv Shankar | {{Party name with color|Indian National Congress}} | 1 | 0 years, 163 days | 0 years, 163 days |- ! 25 | Chandra Shekhar | {{Party name with color|Samajwadi Janata Party (Rashtriya)}} | 2 | 0 years, 121 days | 0 years, 132 days |- ! 26 | Vidya Charan Shukla | {{Party name with color|Samajwadi Janata Party (Rashtriya)}} | 1 | 0 years, 91 days | 0 years, 91 days |- ! 27 | Lal Bahadur Shastri | {{Party name with color|Indian National Congress}} | 1 | 0 years, 38 days | 0 years, 38 days |- ! 28 | Shankarrao Chavan | {{Party name with color|Indian National Congress}} | 1 | 0 years, 14 days | 0 years, 14 days |- ! 29 | Gulzarilal Nanda | {{Party name with color|Indian National Congress}} | 1 | 0 years, 13 days | 0 years, 13 days |- ! 30 | Sikander Bakht | {{Party name with color|Bharatiya Janata Party}} | 1 | 0 years, 11 days | 0 years, 11 days |- ! 31 | V. P. Singh | {{Party name with color|Janata Dal}} | 1 | 0 years, 3 days | 0 years, 3 days |- |}

==See also== * Indian Foreign Secretary * S Jaishankar

==References== <references/>

==External links== * [https://mea.gov.in/ Official Website of Ministry of External Affairs] * [https://mealib.nic.in/ MEA Library]

{{External Affairs Ministers of India}} {{Heads of the Ministries of the Government of India}} {{Foreign relations of India}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:External_Affairs_(India) Minister}} Category:Union ministers of India India Category:Ministers for external affairs of India Category:Ministry of External Affairs (India) Category:Lists of government ministers of India