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From HT Archives: PV Narasimha Rao takes oath as the 9th Prime Minister

Jun 22, 2024 05:00 AM IST

54-member Union council of ministers led by PM PV Narasimha Rao sworn in on June 21, 1991, at Rashtrapati Bhavan. Ministers took oath in Hindi and English.

New Delhi A 54-member three-tier Union council of ministers headed by Prime Minister PV Narasimha Rao was sworn in on June 21, 1991, by President R Venkataraman at an impressive ceremony in Ashok Hall at the Rashtrapati Bhavan. It was attended by a galaxy of leading politicians, including former Prime Ministers VP Singh and Chandra Shekhar.

Prime Minister PV Narasimha Rao with former PM VP Singh at the swearing-in ceremony at Rashtrapati Bhavan on June 21, 1991. (SN Sinha/HT Archive)
Prime Minister PV Narasimha Rao with former PM VP Singh at the swearing-in ceremony at Rashtrapati Bhavan on June 21, 1991. (SN Sinha/HT Archive)

The other leaders present included LK Advani and Atal Bihari Vajpayee of the BJP, and former deputy prime minister Devi Lai.

Some ministers who were to be sworn in could not be informed in time, and three ministers of state and one deputy minister could not make it. They will be sworn in later. Three ministers of state — Mamata Bannerjee, Dalbir Singh and Uttam H Patel — arrived late but were administered the oath by the President.

The 14 Cabinet ministers sworn in were Arjun Singh, Balram Jakhar, SB Chavan, ML Fotedar, Ghulam Nabi Azad, CK Jaffer Sharief, Sheila Kaul, Sitaram Kesri, Vijaya Bhaskar Reddy, Madhavrao Scindia, B Shankaranand, VC Shukla, Manmohan Singh and Madhavsinh Solanki.

The number of ministers of state with independent charge who were sworn in is 14. They include Margaret Alva, HR Bhardwaj, P Chidambaram, Santosh Mohan Dev, Ashok Gehlot, Tarun Gogoi, Kamal Nath, Ajit Panja, Rajesh Pilot, Kalp Nath Rai, P Ramamurthy, PA Sangma, Jagdish Tytler and Balram Singh Yadav.

The surprise choice in the ministry was Dr Manmohan Singh, eminent economist, who also was the only minister to be told in advance that he would be looking after finance portfolio. The portfolios of other ministers are yet to be decided or communicated to them.

The oath-taking ceremony lasted nearly two hours and was witnessed by the senior civil servants and political leaders.

The President, who generally remained silent during the ceremony, congratulated Rangarajan Kumaramangalam specially for being a third-generation minister.

Narasimha Rao also earned the unique distinction of being the first senior minister from the south to take his oath in Hindi. Rao received a big applause on his arrival in the Ashok Hall.

For the second time in seven months, the nation witnessed the swearing-in of another Prime Minister. On November 10 last, Chandra Shekhar was sworn in as India’s eighth Prime Minister on the forecourt of the Rashtrapati Bhavan. This was a departure from tradition.

Tradition returned as the 70-year-old Narasimha Rao was administered the oath of office and secrecy in the high-domed, chandeliered Ashok Hall as the country’s ninth Prime Minister.

The Prime Minister and 49 of his colleagues took the oath in the name of God. Nineteen members of the Council including the Prime Minister, took the oath in Hindi and 34 in English.

Four ministers took their oath “by solemn affirmation”. They are Cabinet minister Ghulam Nabi Azad and ministers of state P Chidambaram, Eduardo Faleiro and Shantaram Patel.

The Cabinet is likely to take stock of the situation in the country, especially in the context of the economic crisis and deteriorating law-and-order situation in Punjab, Kashmir and other parts.

Prime Minister Narasimha Rao has said earlier he would accord top priority to put the economy back on the rails.

The Prime Minister has also called a meeting of high officials to assess the economic situation in the country. Meanwhile, Narasimha Rao will also broadcast an address to the nation.

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