Minister of Defence (India)

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "Minister of Defence" India – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (February 2019) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

Minister of Defence
Rakṣā Maṁtrī
Emblem of India
Flag of India
Incumbent Rajnath Singh since 30 May 2019
Ministry of Defence
Style	The Honourable
Member of	Union Cabinet
Reports to	President of India Prime Minister of India Parliament of India
Appointer	President on the advice of the Prime Minister
Term length	5 years
Formation	15 August 1947
First holder	Baldev Singh
Deputy	Ajay Bhatt Minister of State
Website	mod.gov.in

This article is part of a series on the
Politics of India
Constitution and law Constitution of India Fundamental Rights, Directive Principles and Fundamental Duties of India Human rights Judicial review Taxation Uniform Civil Code Basic structure doctrine Amendment Law of India Indian criminal law Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam Code of Civil Procedure (India)
Government President of India Droupadi Murmu Vice President of India Jagdeep Dhankhar Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi (BJP) Cabinet secretary Rajiv Gauba (IAS) Union Council of Ministries List of ministers Government Departments List of secretaries
Parliament Parliament of India Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla (BJP) Deputy Speaker Vacant Secretary General Utpal Kumar Singh (IAS) House Leader Narendra Modi (BJP) Opposition Leader Vacant Members of Lok Sabha Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar Deputy Speaker Harivansh Narayan Singh Secretary General Pramod Chandra Mody House Leader Piyush Goyal (BJP) Opposition Leader Mallikarjun Kharge (INC) Members of Rajya Sabha Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi
Judiciary Supreme Court of India Chief Justice Dhananjaya Y. Chandrachud Judges of the Supreme Court (List) Secretary General of Supreme Court Atul M. Kurhekar Supreme Court Bar Association District Courts High Courts Lok Adalat Gram Nyayalayas Nyaya panchayat Other tribunals Ministry of Law and Justice Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal Law Commission of India Bar Council of India Attorney-General R. Venkataramani Solicitor General Tushar Mehta Additional Solicitor General of India National Legal Services Authority Pendency of court cases in India National Judicial Appointments Commission
Elections and political parties Presidential elections 2022 2017 2012 Vice Presidential elections 2022 2017 2012 Lok Sabha Election (General elections) 2014 2019 2024 Parliamentary constituencies Rajya Sabha Election 2024 2023 2022 Seats of State of Council State Assembly elections 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 Political parties National coalitions National Democratic Alliance (NDA) Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) National parties State parties Electoral College (India) Election Commission of India State election commission (India)
Administrative divisions States Andhra Pradesh Arunachal Pradesh Assam Bihar Chhattisgarh Goa Gujarat Haryana Himachal Pradesh Jharkhand Karnataka Kerala Madhya Pradesh Maharashtra Manipur Meghalaya Mizoram Nagaland Odisha Punjab Rajasthan Sikkim Tamil Nadu Telangana Tripura Uttar Pradesh Uttarakhand West Bengal Union territories Andaman and Nicobar Islands Chandigarh Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu Delhi Jammu and Kashmir Ladakh Lakshadweep Puducherry Capitals of State and Union Territory Divisions Districts Sub-Districts Community development block Autonomous administrative divisions Proposed states and union territories
Federalism Executive Governors (List) Lieutenant governor and administrators(List) Chief minister(List) Deputy chief ministers(List) Ministries of All State and U.T. governments Legislative State legislative councils State legislative assemblies Speakers(List) Official Opposition(List) Judiciary High Courts Chief justices of High courts Judges of high courts Local government District court(List)
Foreign relations Ministry of External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar Foreign Secretary Vinay Mohan Kwatra (IFrS) Diplomatic missions of / in India Ambassadors and High Commissioners of India / to India Foreign aid by India / to India Passports Nationality law Extradition Treaties Visa requirements Visa policy India and the United Nations India and the Non-Aligned Movement India and the Commonwealth 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue QUAD United Nations Security Council G4 Russia China United States Japan Canada United Kingdom Arabia Persia(Iran) Indo-European Union India–Pacific Islands Indo-Africa (India–Africa Forum Summit) India-Latin America MGC BBIN BRICS BIMSTEC SAARC SCO G20 IBSA East Asia Summit Indian Ocean Naval Symposium Indian Ocean Rim Association History Sanctions Indian diaspora Overseas citizens Policy Of India ITEC programme Look East policy Pan-African e-Network project Indira Gandhi government Narendra Modi government Asian Middle Eastern South Asian Act East) Kashmir conflict Siachen conflict Conflicts with Pakistan Disputes with China Disputes with Nepal State visits to India State visits by prime ministers of India Jawaharlal Nehru Indira Gandhi Atal Bihari Vajpayee Manmohan Singh Narendra Modi
India portal Other countries
v t e

The Minister of Defence (ISO: Rakṣā Maṁtrī) is the head of the Ministry of Defence and a high ranking minister of the Government of India. The Defence Minister is one of the most senior offices in the Union Council of Ministers as well as being a high-level minister in the union cabinet. The defence minister additionally serves as President of the Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses, and as Chancellor of the Defence Institute of Advanced Technology and of the National Defence University.

They are often assisted by a Minister of State for Defence and less-commonly, the lower-ranked Deputy Minister of Defence.

The first defence minister of independent India was Baldev Singh Chokkar, who served in Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru's cabinet during 1947–52. Rajnath Singh is the current defence minister of India.