Deputy Prime Minister of India
| Deputy Prime Minister of India | |
|---|---|
 | |
 | |
Incumbent Vacant since 22 May 2004 | |
| Member of | Parliament of India Union Council of Ministers |
| Nominator | Prime Minister of India |
| Appointer | President of India |
| Inaugural holder | Vallabhbhai Patel (1947–1950) |
| Formation | 15 August 1947 |
The Deputy Prime Minister of India is a member of the Union Council of Ministers in the Government of India. Not a constitutional office, it seldom carries any specific powers.[1] A deputy prime minister usually also holds a cabinet portfolio such as home minister or finance minister. In the parliamentary system of government, the prime minister is treated as the "first among equals" in the cabinet; the position of deputy prime minister is used to bring political stability and strength within a coalition government or in times of national emergency, when a proper chain of command is necessary.
The first Deputy Prime Minister of India was Vallabhbhai Patel, who was also home minister in Jawaharlal Nehru's cabinet. The office has since been only intermittently occupied. The seventh and last deputy prime minister was L. K. Advani, who took on the role in addition to his home ministership from 2002 to 2004 in Atal Bihari Vajpayee's government. The current government does not have a Deputy Prime Minister.
On multiple occasions, proposals have arisen to make the post permanent, but without result. The same goes for the post of deputy chief minister at the state level.
List of Deputy Prime Ministers of India[edit]
Keys
| No. | Officeholder (Portfolio) |
Portrait | Term of office | Political party (Alliance) |
Prime Minister | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Vallabhbhai Patel (Minister of Home Affairs) |
|
15 August 1947 | 15 December 1950 | 3 years, 122 days | Indian National Congress | Jawaharlal Nehru | |
| Vacant (15 December 1950 – 21 March 1967) | ||||||||
| 2 | Morarji Desai (Minister of Finance) |
|
21 March 1967 | 6 December 1969 | 2 years, 260 days | Indian National Congress | Indira Gandhi | |
| Vacant (6 December 1969 – 24 March 1977) | ||||||||
| 3 | Charan Singh (Minister of Home Affairs and Minister of Finance) |
|
24 January 1979 | 28 July 1979 | 185 days | Janata Party | Morarji Desai | |
| 4 | Jagjivan Ram (Minister of Defence) |
| ||||||
| 5 | Yashwant Rao Chavan (Minister of Home Affairs) |
|
28 July 1979 | 14 January 1980 | 170 days | Indian National Congress (Socialist) | Charan Singh | |
| Vacant (14 January 1980 – 2 December 1989) | ||||||||
| 6 | Devi Lal (Minister of Agriculture) |
|
2 December 1989 | 10 November 1990 | 1 year, 201 days | Janata Dal (National Front) |
Vishwanath Pratap Singh | |
| 10 November 1990 | 21 June 1991 | Chandra Shekhar | ||||||
| Vacant (21 June 1991 – 5 February 2002) | ||||||||
| 7 | Lal Krishna Advani (Minister of Home Affairs and Minister of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions) |
|
5 February 2002 | 22 May 2004 | 2 years, 107 days | Bharatiya Janata Party (NDA) |
Atal Bihari Vajpayee | |
| Vacant (Since 22 May 2004) | ||||||||
References[edit]
- ^ Rajendran, S. (2012-07-13). "Of Deputy Chief Ministers and the Constitution". The Hindu. Retrieved 7 November 2017.
| ||
