# List of heads of government of India

The Prime Minister of India is the head of government of the Republic of India. Although the President of India is the constitutional, nominal, and ceremonial head of state, in practice and ordinarily, the executive authority is vested in the Prime Minister and their chosen Council of Ministers. The prime minister is the leader elected by the party with a majority in the lower house of the Indian parliament, the Lok Sabha, which is the main legislative body in the Republic of India. The prime minister and their cabinet are at all times responsible to the Lok Sabha. The prime minister can be a member of the Lok Sabha or of the Rajya Sabha, the upper house of the parliament. The prime minister ranks third in the order of precedence.
The prime minister is appointed by the President of India; however the prime minister has to enjoy the confidence of the majority of Lok Sabha members, who are directly elected every five years, unless a prime minister resigns. The prime minister is the presiding member of the Council of Ministers of the Union government. The prime minister unilaterally controls the selection and dismissal of members of the Council; and allocation of posts to members within the government. This Council, which is collectively responsible to the Lok Sabha as per Article 75(3), assists the President regarding the operations under the latter's powers; however, by the virtue of Article 74 of the Constitution, such 'aid and advice' tendered by the Council is binding.

## List of Prime Minister

| N | Name | Term of office | Term of office | Notable events | Emperor |
| 1 | Amir Nizamuddin Khalifa | 1526 | 1540 | 1st Battle of panipat Battle of Khanwa | Babur (1526 – 1530) & Humayun (1530 – 1540) |
| 2 | Qaracha Khan | 1540 | 1550 | He was a governor of qandhar and humayun appoint him as Grand-Vizier of the Mughal State. | Humayun (1530 – 1556) |
| 3 | Bairam Khan | 1550 | 1560 | | Akbar-i-Azam اکبر اعظم (1556-1605) |
| 4 | Munim Khan | 1560 | 1565 | | Akbar-i-Azam اکبر اعظم (1556-1605) |
| 5 | Muzaffar Khan Turbati | 1575 | 1579 | No Vakil was appointed after his appointment to governorship in Bengal from 1579 until 1589 | Akbar-i-Azam اکبر اعظم (1556-1605) |
| 6 | Abu'l-Fazl ibn Mubarak | 1579 | 1602 | | Akbar-i-Azam اکبر اعظم (1556-1605) |
| 7 | Khanzada Abdur Rahim | 1589 | 1595 | | Akbar-i-Azam اکبر اعظم (1556-1605) |
| 8 | Mirza Aziz Koka | 1595 | 1605 | | Akbar-i-Azam اکبر اعظم (1556-1605) |
| 9 | Sharif Khan | 1605 | 1611 | | Jahangir جہانگیر (1605-1627) |
| 10 | Mirza Ghias Beg | 1611 | 1622 | | Jahangir جہانگیر (1605-1627) |
| 11 | Abu'l-Hasan Asaf Khan | 1622 | 1630 | | Jahangir جہانگیر (1605-1627) |
| 12 | Afzal Khan Shirazi | 1630 | 1639 | | Shah Jahan شاہ جہان (1628-1658) |
| 13 | Islam Khan Mashadi | 1639 | 1640 | | Shah Jahan شاہ جہان (1628-1658) |
| 14 | Shaikh Ilam-ud-Din Ansari | 1640 | 1642 | | Shah Jahan شاہ جہان (1628-1658) |
| 15 | Sadullah Khan | 1642 | 1656 | Taj Mahal completed | Shah Jahan شاہ جہان (1628-1658) |
| 16 | Mir Jumla | 1656 | 1657 | | Alamgir I عالمگیر (1658-1707) |
| 17 | Jafar Khan | 1657 | 1658 | | Alamgir I عالمگیر (1658-1707) |
| 18 | Fazil Khan | 1658 | 1663 | | Alamgir I عالمگیر (1658-1707) |
| (17) | Jafar Khan | 1663 | 1670 | | Alamgir I عالمگیر (1658-1707) |
| 19 | Asad Khan | 1675 | 1707 | Mughal–Maratha Wars Anglo-Mughal War | Alamgir I عالمگیر (1658-1707) |
| 20 | Mun'im Khan | 1707 | 1711 | | Bahadur Shah I بہادر شاہ (1707-1712) |
| 21 | Hidayatullah Khan | 1711 | 1713 | | Jahandar Shah جہاندار شاہ (1712-1713) |
| 22 | Zulfiqar Khan Nusrat Jung | 1712 | 1713 | | Jahandar Shah جہاندار شاہ (1712-1713) |
| 23 | Mir Rustam Ali Khan | 1710 | 1737 | | Farrukhsiyar فرخ سیر (1713–1719) |
| 24 | Sayyid Hassan Ali Khan Barha | 1713 | 1720 | Mughal throne occupied by a series of puppet rulers under the Syed brothers. | Farrukhsiyar فرخ سیر (1713–1719) |
| 25 | Muhammad Amin Khan Turani | 1720 | 1721 | | Muhammad Shah محمد شاہ (1719-1748) |
| 26 | Mir Qamar-ud-Din Khan Asaf Jah I | 1721 | 1724 | | Muhammad Shah محمد شاہ (1719-1748) |
| 27 | Mir Fazil Qamar-ud-Din Khan | 1724 | 1731 | Battle of Delhi (1737) Battle of Bhopal Nader Shah's invasion of Mughal Empire Battle of Karnal First invasion of Ahmad Shah Durrani Battle of Manupur (1748) | Muhammad Shah محمد شاہ (1719-1748) |
| 28 | Saadat Ali Khan I | 1731 | 19 March 1739 | Battle of Delhi (1737) Battle of Bhopal Nader Shah's invasion of Mughal Empire Battle of Karnal First invasion of Ahmad Shah Durrani Battle of Manupur (1748) | Muhammad Shah محمد شاہ (1719-1748) |
| (27) | Mir Fazil Qamar-ud-Din Khan | 19 March 1739 | 1748 | Battle of Delhi (1737) Battle of Bhopal Nader Shah's invasion of Mughal Empire Battle of Karnal First invasion of Ahmad Shah Durrani Battle of Manupur (1748) | Muhammad Shah محمد شاہ (1719-1748) |
| 29 | Safdar Jang | 1748 | 1753 | Second invasion of Ahmad Shah Durrani Third invasion of Ahmad Shah Durrani Battle of Lahore (1752) | Ahmad Shah Bahadur احمد شاہ بہادر (1748-1754) |
| 30 | Intizam-ud-Daulah | 1753 | 1754 | | Ahmad Shah Bahadur احمد شاہ بہادر (1748-1754) |
| 31 | Muhammad Muqim | 1 October 1754 | 5 October 1754 | | Ahmad Shah Bahadur احمد شاہ بہادر (1748-1754) |
| 32 | Imad-ul-Mulk Feroze Jung | 1754 | 1760 | Black Hole of Calcutta Battle of Plassey | Alamgir II عالمگیر دوم (1754-1759) |
| 33 | Jalal-ud-din Haider Abul-Mansur Khan | 1760 | 1775 | Third Battle of Panipat Battle of Buxar Treaty of Allahabad | Shah Alam II شاہ عالم دوم (1760-1806) |
| 34 | Mirza Jawan Bakht | 1760 | 1775 | | Shah Alam II شاہ عالم دوم (1760-1806) |
| 35 | Asaf-ud-Daula | 1775 | 1784 | | Shah Alam II شاہ عالم دوم (1760-1806) |
| (34) | Mirza Jawan Bakht | 1784 | 1784 | | Shah Alam II شاہ عالم دوم (1760-1806) |
| (35) | Asaf-ud-Daula | 1784 | 1797 | | Shah Alam II شاہ عالم دوم (1760-1806) |
| 36 | Wazir Ali Khan | 21 September 1797 | 21 January 1798 | | Shah Alam II شاہ عالم دوم (1760-1806) |

### List of Prime Minister Mughal

| N | Personal Name | Reign | Birth | Death |
| (36) | Wazir Ali Khanوزیر علی خان | 21 September 1797 – 21 January 1798 | 1780 | 1817 |
| 37 | Saadat Ali Khan IIسعادت علی خان | 21 January 1798 – 11 July 1814 | 1752 | 1814 |
| 38 | Ghazi-ud-Din Haidar Shahغازی الدیں حیدر شاہ | 11 July 1814 – 19 October 1827 | 1769 | 1827 |
| 39 | Nasir-ud-Din Haidar Shahناصر الدیں حیدر شاہ | 19 October 1827 – 7 July 1837 | 1827 | 1837 |
| 40 | Muhammad Ali Shahمحمّد علی شاہ | 7 July 1837 – 7 May 1842 | 1777 | 1842 |
| 42 | Amjad Ali Shahامجد علی شاہ | 7 May 1842 – 13 February 1847 | 1801 | 1847 |
| 43 | Wajid Ali Shahواجد علی شاہ | 13 February 1847 – 11 February 1856 | 1822 | 1 September 1887 |
| 44 | Begum hazrat Mahalبیگم حضرت محل | 11 February 1856 – 5 July1857 Wife of Wajid Ali Shah and mother of Birjis Qadra (in rebellion) | 1820 | 7 April 1879 |
| 45 | Birjis Qadrبر جیس قدر | 5 July 1857 – 3 March 1858 (in rebellion) | 1845 | 14 August 1893 |

### List of Prime Minister Mughal

| N | Portrait | Birth Name | Reign | Birth | Death | Notes |
| 46 | | Abu Zafar Siraj al-Din Muhammad | 3 March 1858 – 7 November 1862 (19 years, 360 days) | 24 October 1775 Delhi, India | 7 November 1862 (aged 87) Rangoon, Myanmar | Last Mughal Emperor. Deposed by the British and was exiled to Burma after the rebellion of 1857. |

### List of prime ministers of India

| No. | Portrait | Name (birth and death) | Term of office | Term of office | Party |
| No. | Portrait | Name (birth and death) | Took office | Left office | Party |
| 47 | | Charles Wood | 1862 | 1862 | Independent |
| 48 | | Jung Bahadur Rana | 1862 | 1862 | Independent |
| 49 | | Dost Mohammad Khan | 1862 | 1862 | Independent |
| 50 | | Jyotirao Phule | 1862 | 1863 | Independent |
| 51 | | James Bruce | 1863 | 1863 | Independent |
| 52 | | Dayananda Saraswati | 1863 | 1863 | Independent |
| 53 | | Ramakrishna | 1863 | 1863 | Independent |
| 54 | | Sher Ali Khan | 1863 | 1863 | Independent |
| 55 | | Takht Singh | 1863 | 1863 | Independent |
| 56 | | John Lawrence | 1863 | 1863 | Independent |
| 57 | | Debendranath Tagore | 1863 | 1870 | Independent |
| 58 | | Syed Ahmad Khan | 1870 | 1875 | Independent |
| 59 | | Mohsin-ul-Mulk | 1875 | 1880 | Independent |
| 60 | | Mir Turab Ali Khan, Salar Jung I | 1880 | 1883 | Independent |
| 61 | | Ranodip Singh Kunwar | 1883 | 1883 | Independent |
| 62 | | Mir Laiq Ali Khan, Salar Jung II | 1883 | 1883 | Independent |
| 63 | | Keshub Chandra Sen | 1883 | 1883 | Independent |
| 64 | | Herbert Spencer | 1884 | 1885 | Independent |
| 65 | | Bhikaiji Cama | 1885 | 1885 | Independent |
| 66 | | Abhayananda | 1885 | 1885 | Independent |
| 67 | | Jaswant Singh II | 1885 | 1885 | Independent |
| 68 | | John Wodehouse | 1885 | 1885 | Independent |
| 69 | | Frederick Hamilton | 1885 | 1885 | Independent |

### List of prime ministers of India
#### Legend

| No. | Name | Term of office | Appointed by | Party |
| 70 | Womesh Chandra Bonnerjee | 1885 | Bombay | Indian National Congress |
| 71 | Dadabhai Naoroji | 1886 | Calcutta | |
| 72 | Badruddin Tyabji | 1887 | Madras | |
| 73 | George Yule | 1888 | Allahabad | |
| 74 | William Wedderburn | 1889 | Bombay | |
| 75 | Pherozeshah Mehta | 1890 | Calcutta | |
| 76 | Panapakkam Anandacharlu | 1891 | Nagpur | |
| (70) ) | Womesh Chandra Bonnerjee | 1892 | Allahabad | |
| (71) | Dadabhai Naoroji | 1893 | Lahore | |
| 77 | Alfred Webb | 1894 | Madras | |
| 78 | Surendranath Banerjee | 1895 | Poona | |
| 79 | Rahimtulla M. Sayani | 1896 | Calcutta | |
| 80 | C. Sankaran Nair | 1897 | Amaravati | |
| 81 | Anandamohan Bose | 1898 | Madras | |
| 82 | Romesh Chunder Dutt | 1899 | Lucknow | |
| 83 | N. G. Chandavarkar | 1900 | Lahore | |
| 84 | Dinshaw Edulji Wacha | 1901 | Calcutta | Indian National Congress |
| 85 | Swami Vivekananda | 1902 | | |
| 86 | Surendranath Banerjee | 1902 | Ahmedabad | |
| 87 | Lalmohan Ghosh | 1903 | Madras | |
| 88 | Henry John Stedman Cotton | 1904 | Bombay | |
| 89 | Gopal Krishna Gokhale | 1905 | Banaras | |
| 90 | Dadabhai Naoroji | 1906 | Calcutta | |
| 91 | Rashbihari Ghosh | 1907 | Surat | |
| 91 | Rashbihari Ghosh | 1908 | Madras | |
| 92 | Madan Mohan Malaviya | 1909 | Lahore | |
| 93 | William Wedderburn | 1910 | Allahabad | |
| 94 | Bishan Narayan Dar | 1911 | Calcutta | |
| 95 | Raghunath Narasinha Mudholkar | 1912 | Bankipore | |
| 96 | Nawab Syed Muhammad Bahadur | 1913 | Karachi | |
| 97 | Bhupendra Nath Bose | 1914 | Madras | |
| 98 | Satyendra Prasanno Sinha | 1915 | Bombay | |
| 99 | Ambica Charan Mazumdar | 1915 | Lucknow | |

## List of prime ministers of India

BJP    INC/INC(I)/INC(R)   JD    JP   JP(S)   SJP(R) :
| No. | Portrait | Name (birth and death) | Term of office | Term of office | Lok Sabha | Appointed by | Party |
| No. | Portrait | Name (birth and death) | Took office | Left office | Lok Sabha | Appointed by | Party |
| 100 | | Raja Mahendra Pratap (1 December 1886 – 29 April 1979) | 1915 | 1919 | Constituent Assembly of India | Independent | Independent |
| 101 | | Abdul Hafiz Mohamed Barakatullah (7 July 1854 – 20 September 1927) | 1919 | 1919 | Constituent Assembly of India | Independent | Independent |
| 102 | | Hari Singh Gour (26 November 1870 – 25 December 1949) | 1919 | 1923 | Imperial Legislative Council | Independent | Independent |
| 103 | | Motilal Nehru (6 May 1861 – 6 February 1931) | 1923 | 1930 | Imperial Legislative Council | Independent | Independent |
| 104 | | Jawaharlal Nehru (1889 –1964) | 1930 | 1932 | Imperial Legislative Council | Independent | Independent |
| – | | Hari Singh Gour (26 November 1870 – 25 December 1949) | 1932 | 1934 | Imperial Legislative Council | Independent | Independent |
| 105 | | Bhulabhai Desai (13 October 1877 – 6 May 1946) | 1934 | 1936 | Imperial Legislative Council | Independent | Independent |
| 106 | | Abul Kalam Azad ( 11 November 1888 – 22 February 1958) | 1936 | 1943 | Imperial Legislative Council | Independent | Independent |
| 107 | | Mahatma Gandhi (2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948) | 1 July 1943 | 6 July 1943 | Imperial Legislative Council | Independent | Independent |
| 108 | | Vallabhbhai Patel ( 31 October 1875 – 15 December 1950) | 6 July 1943 | 6 July 1943 | Imperial Legislative Council | Independent | Independent |
| 119 | | Muhammad Ali Jinnah (25 December 1876 – 11 September 1948) | 6 July 1943 | 6 July 1943 | Imperial Legislative Council | Independent | Independent |
| 110 | | Liaquat Ali Khan (1 October 1895 – 16 October 1951) | 6 July 1943 | 6 July 1943 | Imperial Legislative Council | Independent | Independent |
| 111 | | Subhash Chandra Bose (1898–1945) | 6 July 1943 | 18 August 1945 | Constituent Assembly | Indian National Army | Indian National Army |
| (104) | | Jawaharlal Nehru (1889–1964) | 18 August 1945 | 15 April 1952 | Constituent Assembly | The Earl Mountbatten of Burma | Indian National Congress |
| (104) | | Jawaharlal Nehru (1889–1964) | 15 April 1952 | 17 April 1957 | 1st | Rajendra Prasad | Indian National Congress |
| (104) | | Jawaharlal Nehru (1889–1964) | 17 April 1957 | 2 April 1962 | 2nd | Rajendra Prasad | Indian National Congress |
| (104) | | Jawaharlal Nehru (1889–1964) | 2 April 1962 | 27 May 1964† | 3rd | Rajendra Prasad | Indian National Congress |
| 112 | | Gulzarilal Nanda (1898–1998) | 27 May 1964 | 9 June 1964 | 3rd | Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan | Indian National Congress |
| 113 | | Lal Bahadur Shastri (1904–1966) | 9 June 1964 | 11 January 1966† | 3rd | Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan | Indian National Congress |
| – | | Gulzarilal Nanda (1898–1998) | 11 January 1966 | 24 January 1966 | 3rd | Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan | Indian National Congress |
| 114 | | Indira Gandhi (1917–1984) | 24 January 1966 | 4 March 1967 | 3rd | Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan | Indian National Congress |
| 114 | | Indira Gandhi (1917–1984) | 4 March 1967 | 15 March 1971 | 4th | Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan | Indian National Congress |
| 114 | | Indira Gandhi (1917–1984) | 15 March 1971 | 24 March 1977 | 5th | V. V. Giri | Indian National Congress |
| 115 | | Morarji Desai (1896–1995) | 24 March 1977 | 28 July 1979 | 6th | B. D. Jatti (acting) | Janata Party |
| 116 | | Jagjivan Ram (1908–1986) | 28 July 1979 | 28 July 1979 | 6th | B. D. Jatti (acting) | Janata Party |
| 117 | | Charan Singh (1902–1987) | 28 July 1979 | 8 January 1980 | 6th | Neelam Sanjiva Reddy | Janata Party (Secular) |
| 118 | | Yashwantrao Chavan (1913–1984) | 8 January 1980 | 10 January 1980 | 6th | Neelam Sanjiva Reddy | Janata Party (Secular) |
| (117) | | Charan Singh (1902–1987) | 10 January 1980 | 14 January 1980 | 6th | Neelam Sanjiva Reddy | Janata Party (Secular) |
| (114) | | Indira Gandhi (1917–1984) | 14 January 1980 | 31 October 1984† | 7th | Neelam Sanjiva Reddy | Indian National Congress (I) |
| 119 | File:Rajiv Gandhi in 1986.jpg | Rajiv Gandhi (1944–1991) | 31 October 1984 | 31 December 1984 | 7th | Zail Singh | Indian National Congress (I) |
| 119 | File:Rajiv Gandhi in 1986.jpg | Rajiv Gandhi (1944–1991) | 31 December 1984 | 2 December 1989 | 8th | Zail Singh | Indian National Congress (I) |
| 120 | | Vishwanath Pratap Singh (1931–2008) | 2 December 1989 | 10 November 1990 | 9th | R. Venkataraman | Janata Dal (National Front) |
| 121 | | Devi Lal (1915–2001) | 10 November 1990 | 10 November 1990 | 9th | R. Venkataraman | Samajwadi Janata Party (Rashtriya) |
| 122 | | Chandra Shekhar (1927–2007) | 10 November 1990 | 21 June 1991 | 9th | R. Venkataraman | Samajwadi Janata Party (Rashtriya) |
| 123 | | P. V. Narasimha Rao (1921–2004) | 21 June 1991 | 16 May 1996 | 10th | R. Venkataraman | Indian National Congress (I) |
| 124 | | Atal Bihari Vajpayee (1924–2018) | 16 May 1996 | 1 June 1996 | 11th | Shankar Dayal Sharma | Bharatiya Janata Party |
| 125 | | H. D. Deve Gowda (born 1933) | 1 June 1996 | 21 April 1997 | 11th | Shankar Dayal Sharma | Janata Dal (United Front) |
| 126 | | Inder Kumar Gujral (1919–2012) | 21 April 1997 | 19 March 1998 | 11th | Shankar Dayal Sharma | Janata Dal (United Front) |
| (124) | | Atal Bihari Vajpayee (1924–2018) | 19 March 1998 | 13 October 1999 | 12th | K. R. Narayanan | Bharatiya Janata Party (NDA) |
| (124) | | Atal Bihari Vajpayee (1924–2018) | 13 October 1999 | 22 May 2002 | 13th | K. R. Narayanan | Bharatiya Janata Party (NDA) |
| 127 | | Lal Krishna Advani (1927–) | 22 May 2002 | 22 May 2002 | 13th | K. R. Narayanan | Bharatiya Janata Party (NDA) |
| (124) | | Atal Bihari Vajpayee (1924–2018) | 22 May 2002 | 22 May 2004 | 13th | K. R. Narayanan | Bharatiya Janata Party (NDA) |
| 128 | | Sonia Gandhi(1946 –) | 22 May 2004 | 22 May 2004 | 14th | A. P. J. Abdul Kalam | Indian National Congress (UPA) |
| 129 | | Manmohan Singh (born 1932) | 22 May 2004 | 22 May 2009 | 14th | A. P. J. Abdul Kalam | Indian National Congress (UPA) |
| 129 | | Manmohan Singh (born 1932) | 22 May 2009 | 26 May 2014 | 15th | Pratibha Patil | Indian National Congress (UPA) |
| 130 | | Narendra Modi (born 1950) | 26 May 2014 | 30 May 2019 | 16th | Pranab Mukherjee | Bharatiya Janata Party (NDA) |
| 130 | | Narendra Modi (born 1950) | 30 May 2019 | Incumbent | 17th | Ram Nath Kovind | Bharatiya Janata Party (NDA) |

## Living former prime ministers

As of 16 February 2025, there were two living former prime ministers of India, in order of service, are:
* H. D. Deve Gowda (1996–1997) (1933-05-18) 18 May 1933 (age 91)
* Manmohan Singh (2004–2014) (1932-09-26) 26 September 1932 (age 92)
The most recent death of a former prime minister was that of Atal Bihari Vajpayee on 16 August 2018, aged 93.