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Deputy Prime Minister of India

Deputy head of the government of India


Deputy head of the government of India

FieldValue
postDeputy Prime Minister
bodythe Republic of India
native_nameBhārat Ke Upapradhānamantrī
insigniaEmblem of India.svg
insigniasize55px
insigniacaptionState Emblem of India
flagFlag of India.svg
flagcaptionFlag of India
incumbentVacant
incumbentsince23 May 2004
departmentGovernment of India
style*The Honourable (formal)
typeDeputy Head of government
statusDeputy Leader of the Executive
member_of*Parliament of India
reports_to*President of India
nominatorPrime Minister of India
appointerPresident of India
termlengthAt the pleasure of the president
termlength_qualified
constituting_instrumentNot mentioned in the Constitution of India
formation15 August 1947;
ago
firstVallabhbhai Patel
lastL. K. Advani
abbreviationDPM
  • His Excellency (diplomatic)
  • Mr. Deputy Prime Minister (informal)
  • Union Council of Ministers
  • Vice President of India
  • Prime Minister of India
  • Parliament of India ago

The deputy prime minister of India (IAST: Bhārat Ke Upapradhānamantrī), although not a Constitutional post, is the second-highest ranking minister of the Union in the executive branch of the Government of India and is a senior member of the Union Council of Ministers. The office holder also deputizes for the prime minister in their absence.

The sitting deputy prime minister ranks fourth in the Order of Precedence of India and is nominated by prime minister and appointed by the president of India.

The longest-serving deputy prime minister was the first deputy prime minister, Vallabhbhai Patel, whose tenure lasted 3 years and 122 days. His premiership was followed by Morarji Desai, Charan Singh, Jagjivan Ram, Yashwantrao Chavan, Devi Lal and L.K. Advani.

The office has since been only intermittently occupied, having been occupied for a little more than 10 years out of the 75 years since its inception. Since 1950 India has had 7 deputy prime ministers, of which none having at least one full term.

Origins and history

India follows a parliamentary system in which the deputy prime minister is the presiding deputy head of the government and deputy chief of the executive of the government. The deputy prime minister must become a member of parliament within six months of beginning their tenure, if they are not one already.

1947–1950

Since 1947, there have been 7 different deputy prime ministers. The first was Vallabhbhai Patel of the Indian National Congress party, who was sworn in on 15 August 1947, when India gained independence from the British Raj. Serving until his death in December 1950, Patel remains India's longest-serving deputy prime minister.

1967–1969

After Patel, the post was vacant until Morarji Desai became the second deputy prime minister in 1967 and has the second-longest tenure. Morarji Desai and Charan Singh were the deputy prime ministers who later became Prime Minister of India.

After Desai, the post was vacant again for almost 10 years.

1979–1980

In less than a year there were 3 different deputy prime ministers, Charan Singh and Jagjivan Ram became deputy prime ministers simultaneously under one ministry, and they were consecutively followed by Yashwantrao Chavan without any break, who became deputy prime minister in a different ministry.

After Chavan, the post was vacant again for almost 10 years.

1989–1991

Devi Lal is the only deputy prime minister to represent both parties in the same post. The post was vacant for 100 days between the two terms of Devi Lal.

After Lal, the post was vacant again for more than 11 years.

2002–2004

Lal Krishna Advani was the seventh person to serve as the deputy prime minister of India until the post became vacant.

List

;Key

  • Resigned
  • Died in office
  • Returned to office after a previous non-consecutive term
(1) (2) (1) (1) (2) (1)PortraitName
(borndied)
ConstituencyTerm of office
Duration in years and daysOther ministerial offices heldPolitical partyMinistryPrime Minister********************************
Indian National Congress}}"[[File:Vallabhbhai Patel 1975 stamp of India.jpg100px]]Vallabhbhai Patel(1875–1950)
Bombay
(Constituent Assembly)15 August15 December
1950Indian National CongressNehru IJawaharlal NehruIndian National Congress}}"
,
Indian National Congress}}"[[File:Morarji Desai 1997 stamp of India.jpg100px]]Morarji Desai(1896–1995)
MP for Surat13 March
196719 July
1969
Indian National CongressIndira IIIndira GandhiIndian National Congress}}"
Janata Party}}"[[File:Charan Singh 1990 stamp of India.jpg100px]]Charan Singh(1902–1987)
MP for Baghpat24 January
197916 July
1979
Janata PartyDesaiMorarji DesaiJanata Party}}"
Janata Party}}"[[File:Jagjivan Ram 1991 stamp of India.jpg100px]]Jagjivan Ram(1908–1986)
MP for Sasaram24 January
197928 July
1979
Indian National Congress (Urs)}}"[[File:Yashwantrao Chavan 2010 stamp of India.jpg100px]]Yashwantrao Chavan
(1913–1984)
MP for Satara28 July
197914 January
1980Indian National Congress (Urs)CharanCharan SinghJanata Party (Secular)}}"
Janata Dal}}"[[File:Chaudhary Devi Lal 2001 stamp of India.jpg100px]]Devi Lal(1915–2001)
MP for Sikar2 December
19891 August
1990
Janata DalSinghV. P. SinghJanata Dal}}"
Samajwadi Janata Party (Rashtriya)}}"[[File:Chaudhary Devi Lal 2001 stamp of India.jpg100px]]Devi Lal(1915–2001)
MP for Sikar10 November
199021 June
1991
Samajwadi Janata Party (Rashtriya)ShekharChandra ShekharSamajwadi Janata Party (Rashtriya)}}"
Bharatiya Janata Party}}"[[File:Lkadvani.jpg95px]]Lal Krishna Advani(born 1927)
MP for Gandhinagar29 June
200222 May
2004Bharatiya Janata PartyVajpayee IIIAtal Bihari VajpayeeBharatiya Janata Party}}"

List of deputy prime ministers by length of term

No.NamePartyLength of termLongest continuous termTotal years of deputy prime ministership1234567
Vallabhbhai PatelIndian National Congress}}"INC3 years, 122 days
Morarji Desai2 years, 128 days
Lal Krishna AdvaniBJP}}"BJP1 year, 328 days
Devi LalJanata Dal}}"JDSamajwadi Janata Party (Rashtriya)}}"SJP(R)242 days1 year, 100 days
Jagjivan RamJanata Party}}"JP185 days
Charan Singh173 days
Yashwantrao ChavanIndian National Congress (Urs)}}"INC(U)170 days

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bar:Patel from: 15/08/1947 till: 15/12/1950 color:inc text:"Patel" fontsize:10 bar:Vacant from: 16/12/1950 till: 12/03/1967 color:vacant from: 20/07/1969 till: 23/01/1979 color:vacant from: 14/01/1980 till: 01/12/1989 color:vacant from: 01/08/1990 till: 09/11/1990 color:vacant from: 22/06/1991 till: 28/06/2002 color:vacant from: 23/05/2004 till: $today color:vacant text:"Vacant" fontsize:10 bar:Desai from: 13/03/1967 till: 19/07/1969 color:inc text:"Desai" fontsize:10 bar:Singh from: 24/01/1979 till: 16/07/1979 color:jp text:"Singh" fontsize:10 bar:Ram from: 24/01/1979 till: 28/07/1979 color:jp text:"Ram" fontsize:10 bar:Chavan from: 28/07/1979 till: 14/01/1980 color:incu text:"Chavan" fontsize:10 bar:Lal from: 02/12/1989 till: 01/08/1990 color:jd from: 10/11/1990 till: 21/06/1991 color:sjpr text:"Lal" fontsize:10 bar:Advani from: 29/06/2002 till: 22/05/2004 color:bjp text:"Advani" fontsize:10

Lifespan of deputy prime ministers

Define $width = 1000 Define $warning = 900 # $width - 155 Define $height = 450 # 14x20 + 160

Define $start = 1875 Define $end = Define $now =

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bar:2 width:18 color:LIFESPAN align:center fontsize:M color:vacant from:15/12/1950 till:12/03/1967

bar:3 width:18 color:LIFESPAN align:center fontsize:M from:29/02/1896 till:10/04/1995 shift:(-0,$dy) textcolor:NAME text: Morarji Desai color:DPM_INC from:13/03/1967 till:19/07/1969

bar:2 width:18 color:LIFESPAN align:center fontsize:M color:vacant from:20/07/1969 till:23/01/1979

bar:4 width:18 color:LIFESPAN align:center fontsize:M from:23/12/1902 till:29/05/1987 shift:(-0,$dy) textcolor:NAME text:Charan Singh color:DPM_JP from:24/01/1979 till:16/07/1979

bar:5 width:18 color:LIFESPAN align:center fontsize:M from:15/04/1908 till:06/07/1986 shift:(-0,$dy) textcolor:NAME text:Jagjivan Ram color:DPM_JP from:24/01/1979 till:28/07/1979

bar:6 width:18 color:LIFESPAN align:center fontsize:M from:12/03/1913 till:25/11/1984 shift:(-0,$dy) textcolor:NAME text:Yashwantrao Chavan color:DPM_INCU from:28/07/1979 till:14/01/1980

bar:2 width:18 color:LIFESPAN align:center fontsize:M color:vacant from:14/01/1980 till:01/12/1989

bar:7 width:18 color:LIFESPAN align:center fontsize:M from:25/09/1915 till:06/04/2001 shift:(-0,$dy) textcolor:NAME text:Devi Lal color:DPM_JD from:02/12/1989 till:01/08/1990 color:DPM_SJP(R) from:10/11/1990 till:21/06/1991

bar:2 width:18 color:LIFESPAN align:center fontsize:M color:vacant from:01/08/1990 till:09/11/1990 from:22/06/1991 till:28/06/2002

bar:8 width:18 color:LIFESPAN align:center fontsize:M from:08/11/1927 till:$now shift:(-0,$dy) textcolor:NAME text:L. K. Advani color:DPM_BJP from:29/06/2002 till:22/05/2004

bar:2 width:18 color:LIFESPAN align:center fontsize:M color:vacant from:22/05/2004 till:$now

TextData = fontsize:M textcolor:red pos:($warning,30) text:Updated

TextData = pos:(250,$height) fontsize:L textcolor:black text:"Lifespan and terms of office of each deputy prime minister of India"

List by party

No.Political partyNumber of Deputy Prime ministersTotal days of holding DPMO123456
Indian National Congress22077 days
Bharatiya Janata Party1693 days
Janata Dal1242 days
Samajwadi Janata Party (Rashtriya)1223 days
Janata Party2185 days
Indian National Congress (Urs)1170 days

Parties by total duration (in days) of holding Deputy Prime Minister's Office

Notes

References

References

  1. (26 July 1979). "Table of Precedence". President's Secretariat.
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