The Minister of External Affairs, which is commonly known as "Foreign Minister", is a cabinet ranking position in the Government of India, who is responsible of the foreign relation of India with others countries. The Foreign Minister of India plays an important role in determining Indian foreign policy. He is responsible for making cordial relations with the countries of rest of the world.
Usually this key ministry is given to one of the senior-most or most experienced person in the Union Cabinet. The chief responsibility of the Foreign Minister is to represent India and its government at the international level.
As of now there are 29 person have hold the post of Foreign Minister of India. Mrs. Indira Gandhi was the first woman Foreign Minister of India. She hold this position from 6 September 1967 to 13 February 1969.
The current Minister of External Affairs is Dr. S. Jaishankar, who has held the position since May 30, 2019.
Now let’s have a look on the list of Foreign Ministers of India till date;
| Foreign Minister | Tenure | Prime Minister |
| 1. Jawahar Lal Nehru | 2 Sept. 1946 to 27 May 1964 | Himself |
| 2. Gulzarilal Nanda | 27 May 1964 to 9 June 1964 | Himself (acting) |
| 3. Lal Bahadur Shastri | 9 June 1964 to 17 July 1964 | Himself |
| 4. Swaran Singh | 18 July 1964 to 14 Nov. 1966 | Lal Bahadur Shastri, Indira Gandhi |
| 5. M. C. Chagla | 14 Nov. 1966 to 5 Sept. 1967 | Indira Gandhi |
| 6. Indira Gandhi | 6 Sept. 1967 to 13 Feb. 1969 | Indira Gandhi |
| 7. Dinesh Singh | 14 Feb. 1969 to 27 June 1970 | Indira Gandhi |
| Swaran Singh (reappointed) | 27 June 1970 to 10 Oct. 1974 | Indira Gandhi |
| 8. Yashwantrao Chavan | 10 Oct. 1974 to 24 March 1977 | Indira Gandhi |
| 9.Atal Bihari Vajpayee (Janata Party ) | 26 March 1977 28 to July 1979 | Morarji Desai |
| 10. Shyam Nandan Prasad Mishra (Janata Party (Secular)) | 28 July 1979 to 13 January 1980
| Charan Singh |
| 11. P. V. Narasimha Rao | 14 Jan. 1980 to 19 July 1984 | Indira Gandhi |
| Indira Gandhi (reappointed) | 19 July 1984 to 31 Oct. 1984 | Herself |
| 12. Rajiv Gandhi | 31 Oct. 1984 to 24 Sept. 1985 | Himself |
| 13. Bali Ram Bhagat | 25 Sept. 1985 to 12 May 1986 | Rajiv Gandhi |
| 14. P. Shiv Shankar | 12 May 1986 to 22 Oct. 1986 | Rajiv Gandhi |
| 15.N. D. Tiwari | 22 Oct. 1986 to 25 July 1987 | Rajiv Gandhi |
| 25 July 1987 to 25 June 1988 | Himself | |
| P. V. Narasimha Rao (reappointed) | 25 June 1988 to 2 Dec. 1989 | Rajiv Gandhi |
| 16. V. P. Singh (Janta Dal) | 2 Dec. 1989 to 5 Dec. 1989 | Himself |
| 17. I. K. Gujral (Janata Dal (National Front)) | 5 Dec. 1989 to 10 Nov. 1990 | V. P. Singh |
| 18. Vidya Charan Shukla (Samajwadi Janata Party) | 21 Nov. 1990 to 20 Feb. 1991 | Chandra Shekhar
|
| 19. Madhavsinh Solanki | 21 June 1991 to 31 March 1992 | P. V. Narasimha Rao |
| P. V. Narasimha Rao (reappointed)) | 31 March 1992 to 18 January 1993 | Himself |
| Dinesh Singh (reappointed) | 18 January 1993 to 10 February 1995 | P. V. Narasimha Rao |
| 20. Pranab Mukherjee | 10 February 1995 to 16 May 1996 | P. V. Narasimha Rao |
| 21. Sikander Bakht | 21 May 1996 to 1 June 1996 | Atal Bihari Vajpayee |
| I. K. Gujral (Janata Dal ) | 1 June 1996 to 18 March 1998 | H. D. Deve Gowda & I. K. Gujral |
| Atal Bihari Vajpayee (reappointed) | 19 March 1998 to 5 December 1998 | Atal Bihari Vajpayee |
| 22. Jaswant Singh | 5 Dec. 1998 to 23 June 2002 | Atal Bihari Vajpayee |
| 23.Yashwant Sinha | 1 July 2002 to 22 May 2004 | Atal Bihari Vajpayee |
| 24. Natwar Singh | 22 May 2004 TO 6 Nov. 2005 | Manmohan Singh |
| 25. Manmohan Singh | 6 Nov. 2005 to 24 Oct. 2006 | himself |
| Pranab Mukherjee (reappointed) | 24 Oct. 2006 to 22 May 2009 | Manmohan Singh |
| 26. S. M. Krishna | 22 May 2009 to 26 Oct. 2012 | Manmohan Singh |
| 27. Salman Khurshid | 28 Oct. 2012 to 26 May 2014 | Manmohan Singh |
| 26 May 2014 to 30 May 2019 | Narendra Modi | |
| 29. Subrahmanyam Jaishankar | 30 May 2019 -- Incumbent | Narendra Modi |
It is also observed that the Foreign Minister is assisted by a Minister of State for External Affairs or the lower-ranked Deputy Minister of External Affairs.
The data given in the above table shows that on many occasions a Prime Minister hold the post of foreign minister also and this trend is started by the very first prime minister of India Mr. Jawahar Lal Nehru.
What is the role of the Minister of External Affairs?
The Minister of External Affairs, or Foreign Minister, usually formulates, implements, and presents the foreign policy at the International Conferences of the Government of India to advance the nation's security and developmental priorities globally.
Who appoint the Minister of External Affairs of India?
The Minister of External Affairs of India is appointed by the President of India on the recommendation of the Prime Minister of India.
What are the responsibilities of the Minister of External Affairs of India?
The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), under the Minister's leadership, manages a wide range of responsibilities, including:
- Maintaining diplomatic relations with other countries.
- Representing India in international forums like the UN and G20.
- Negotiating treaties and agreements.
- Providing support to Indian citizens abroad, including visa and passport services.
- Promoting India's culture and trade globally.
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