List of Law Ministers of India
List of all Law Ministers of India from 1947 to 2026, with their party, dates, and total time in office.
First Minister
Dr. B. R. Ambedkar
Assumed office 15 Aug 1947
Current Incumbent
Arjun Ram Meghwal
Serving Union Minister
Unique Ministers
26 Ministers
Post-independence 1947–2026
Longest Tenure
Asoke Kumar Sen (11 yrs total)
Historic milestone service
| # | Minister | Party | From | To | Duration | Constituency | House |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 |
BA
Dr. B. R. Ambedkar
|
Scheduled Castes Federation | 15 Aug 1947 | 6 Oct 1951 | 4 yrs, 52 days | Bombay | Constituent Assembly |
| #2 |
KK
Kailash Nath Katju
|
Indian National Congress | 5 Nov 1951 | 13 May 1952 | 190 days | Mandsaur | Lok Sabha |
| #3 |
CB
Charu Chandra Biswas
|
Indian National Congress | 13 May 1952 | 17 Apr 1957 | 4 yrs, 339 days | West Bengal | Rajya Sabha |
| #4 |
AS
Asoke Kumar Sen 1st Term
|
Indian National Congress | 17 Apr 1957 | 24 Jan 1966 | 8 yrs, 282 days | Calcutta North West | Lok Sabha |
| #5 |
GP
Gopal Swarup Pathak
|
Indian National Congress | 24 Jan 1966 | 13 Mar 1967 | 1 yr, 48 days | Uttar Pradesh | Rajya Sabha |
| #6 |
GM
P. Govinda Menon
|
Indian National Congress | 13 Mar 1967 | 23 May 1970 | 3 yrs, 71 days | Mukundapuram | Lok Sabha |
| #7 |
KH
K. Hanumanthaiya
|
Indian National Congress | 26 Jun 1970 | 18 Mar 1971 | 265 days | Bangalore City | Lok Sabha |
| #8 |
HG
H. R. Gokhale
|
Indian National Congress | 18 Mar 1971 | 24 Mar 1977 | 6 yrs, 6 days | Bombay North West | Lok Sabha |
| #9 |
SB
Shanti Bhushan
|
Janata Party | 26 Mar 1977 | 28 Jul 1979 | 2 yrs, 124 days | Uttar Pradesh | Rajya Sabha |
| #10 |
HK
Hans Raj Khanna
|
Janata Party (Secular) | 30 Jul 1979 | 3 Aug 1979 | 4 days | Nominated | None |
| #11 |
SK
S. N. Kacker
|
Janata Party (Secular) | 3 Aug 1979 | 14 Jan 1980 | 164 days | Uttar Pradesh | Rajya Sabha |
| #12 |
PS
P. Shiv Shankar 1st Term
|
Indian National Congress | 14 Jan 1980 | 15 Jan 1982 | 2 yrs, 1 day | Secunderabad | Lok Sabha |
| #13 |
JK
Jagannath Kaushal
|
Indian National Congress | 15 Jan 1982 | 31 Dec 1984 | 2 yrs, 351 days | Chandigarh | Lok Sabha |
| #14 |
AS
Asoke Kumar Sen 2nd Term
|
Indian National Congress | 31 Dec 1984 | 27 Mar 1987 | 2 yrs, 86 days | Calcutta North West | Lok Sabha |
| #15 |
PS
P. Shiv Shankar 2nd Term
|
Indian National Congress | 25 Jul 1987 | 14 Feb 1988 | 204 days | Gujarat | Rajya Sabha |
| #16 |
BS
B. Shankaranand
|
Indian National Congress | 14 Feb 1988 | 25 Jun 1988 | 132 days | Chikkodi | Lok Sabha |
| #17 |
BD
Bindeshwari Dubey
|
Indian National Congress | 25 Jun 1988 | 2 Dec 1989 | 1 yr, 160 days | Bihar | Rajya Sabha |
| #18 |
DG
Dinesh Goswami
|
Asom Gana Parishad | 6 Dec 1989 | 10 Nov 1990 | 339 days | Guwahati | Lok Sabha |
| #19 |
SS
Subramanian Swamy
|
Janata Party | 21 Nov 1990 | 21 Jun 1991 | 212 days | Uttar Pradesh | Rajya Sabha |
| #20 |
KR
Kotla Vijaya Bhaskara Reddy
|
Indian National Congress | 21 Jun 1991 | 9 Oct 1992 | 1 yr, 110 days | Kurnool | Lok Sabha |
| #21 |
PV
P. V. Narasimha Rao PM in Charge
|
Indian National Congress | 9 Oct 1992 | 16 May 1996 | 3 yrs, 220 days | Nandyal | Lok Sabha |
| #22 |
RJ
Ram Jethmalani 1st Term
|
Bharatiya Janata Party | 16 May 1996 | 1 Jun 1996 | 16 days | Maharashtra | Rajya Sabha |
| #23 |
RK
Ramakant Khalap
|
Maharashtrawadi Gomantak | 1 Jun 1996 | 21 Apr 1997 | 324 days | Panaji | Lok Sabha |
| #24 |
MT
M. Thambidurai
|
All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam | 19 Mar 1998 | 8 Apr 1999 | 1 yr, 20 days | Karur | Lok Sabha |
| #25 |
PK
P. R. Kumaramangalam
|
Bharatiya Janata Party | 9 Apr 1999 | 13 Oct 1999 | 187 days | Tiruchirappalli | Lok Sabha |
| #26 |
RJ
Ram Jethmalani 2nd Term
|
Bharatiya Janata Party | 13 Oct 1999 | 23 Jul 2000 | 284 days | Maharashtra | Rajya Sabha |
| #27 |
AJ
Arun Jaitley 1st Term
|
Bharatiya Janata Party | 24 Jul 2000 | 1 Jul 2002 | 1 yr, 342 days | Gujarat | Rajya Sabha |
| #28 |
JK
K. Jana Krishnamurthi
|
Bharatiya Janata Party | 1 Jul 2002 | 29 Jan 2003 | 212 days | Gujarat | Rajya Sabha |
| #29 |
AJ
Arun Jaitley 2nd Term
|
Bharatiya Janata Party | 29 Jan 2003 | 22 May 2004 | 1 yr, 114 days | Gujarat | Rajya Sabha |
| #30 |
HB
H. R. Bhardwaj
|
Indian National Congress | 23 May 2004 | 22 May 2009 | 4 yrs, 364 days | Haryana | Rajya Sabha |
| #31 |
VM
M. Veerappa Moily
|
Indian National Congress | 28 May 2009 | 12 Jul 2011 | 2 yrs, 45 days | Chikkballapur | Lok Sabha |
| #32 |
SK
Salman Khurshid
|
Indian National Congress | 12 Jul 2011 | 28 Oct 2012 | 1 yr, 108 days | Farrukhabad | Lok Sabha |
| #33 |
AK
Ashwani Kumar
|
Indian National Congress | 28 Oct 2012 | 11 May 2013 | 195 days | Punjab | Rajya Sabha |
| #34 |
KS
Kapil Sibal
|
Indian National Congress | 11 May 2013 | 26 May 2014 | 1 yr, 15 days | Chandni Chowk | Lok Sabha |
| #35 |
RP
Ravi Shankar Prasad 1st Term
|
Bharatiya Janata Party | 26 May 2014 | 9 Nov 2014 | 167 days | Bihar | Rajya Sabha |
| #36 |
SG
D. V. Sadananda Gowda
|
Bharatiya Janata Party | 9 Nov 2014 | 5 Jul 2016 | 1 yr, 239 days | Bangalore North | Lok Sabha |
| #37 |
RP
Ravi Shankar Prasad 2nd Term
|
Bharatiya Janata Party | 5 Jul 2016 | 7 Jul 2021 | 5 yrs, 2 days | Patna Sahib | Lok Sabha |
| #38 |
KR
Kiren Rijiju
|
Bharatiya Janata Party | 7 Jul 2021 | 18 May 2023 | 1 yr, 315 days | Arunachal West | Lok Sabha |
| #39 |
AM
Arjun Ram Meghwal Incumbent
|
Bharatiya Janata Party | 18 May 2023 | Present | Serving | Bikaner | Lok Sabha |
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Frequently Asked Questions
Who was the first Law Minister of independent India?
Dr. B. R. Ambedkar was the first Minister of Law of independent India, serving from 15 August 1947 to 6 October 1951.
Who is the current Law Minister of India?
Arjun Ram Meghwal is the Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Law and Justice, having assumed office on 18 May 2023 and continuing in the third Modi ministry.
Who was the longest-serving Law Minister of India?
Asoke Kumar Sen served as Law Minister for over 11 years across two stints (1957–1966 under Nehru, Shastri, and Indira Gandhi, and 1984–1987 under Rajiv Gandhi).
Which Law Minister piloted the 44th Constitutional Amendment?
Shanti Bhushan, serving as Law Minister in the Morarji Desai government (1977–1979), piloted the 44th Amendment Act to restore civil liberties curtailed during the Emergency.