Rajnath Singh was born in Bhabhaura village ofChandauli district,Uttar Pradesh to father Ram Badan Singh and mother Gujarati Devi.[6][7][8] He was born into a family of farmers. He received his primary education from a local school of his village and went on to secure a master's degree in physics, acquiring first division results fromGorakhpur University.[9] From childhood he was inspired by the ideology ofRashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh.[10] He worked as a lecturer of Physics at K.B. Post-Graduate CollegeMirzapur,Uttar Pradesh.[7] He also has a brother, Jaipal Singh.[11]
Singh had been associated with theRashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh since 1964, at the age of 13 and remained connected with the organisation. He also becameShakha Karyavah (General Secretary) ofMirzapur in the year 1972.[7] After 2 years in the year 1974, he entered politics.[12] Between 1969 and 1971 he was the organizational secretary of theAkhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (the student wing of the RSS) inGorakhpur. He became the general secretary of the RSS'sMirzapur branch in 1972.[13] In 1974, he was appointed secretary for the Mirzapur unit of theBharatiya Jana Sangh, predecessor ofBharatiya Janata Party.[14] In 1975, aged 24, Singh was appointed District President of theJana Sangh.
At that time he gained the popularity inState (politics) and then joinedBJP in the year 1980 and was one of the initial members of the Party.[17] He became the State President of the BJP youth wing in 1984, the National general secretary in 1986 and the National President in 1988. He was also elected into theUttar Pradesh Legislative Council.[14]
In 1991, when theBharatiya Janata Party formed its first government in Uttar Pradesh under chief ministerKalyan Singh, he was appointed education minister of Uttar Pradesh. He held the education portfolio for a tenure of two years.[18] Major highlights of his tenure as education minister included the controversialAnti-Copying Act, 1992, which made copying a non-bailable offence,[19] modernising science texts, and incorporatingvedic mathematics into thecurriculum.[5]
In 1991, Singh led a partial rewrite of history textbooks used in government schools and introducedvedic mathematics into the curriculum.[5] Seen as loyal to theRSS, aHindu nationalist organisation, Singh's changes to state education policy were widely perceived to have been motivated by his RSS affiliation and ideological kinship with the organisation's leadership.[24] As minister, he also focused on promoting the usage of Indian languages instead of English in courses and instruction. At the same time, he stated his appreciation for knowledge of modern languages.[25]
In April 1994, he was elected into theRajya Sabha (Upper House of theParliament) and became involved with the Advisory Committee on Industry (1994–96), Consultative Committee for the Ministry of Agriculture, Business Advisory Committee, House Committee and the Committee on Human Resource Development.[26] On 25 March 1997, he became the President of the BJP's Uttar Pradesh unit and in 1999 became the Union Cabinet Minister for Surface Transport.[14]
In 2000, he becamechief minister of Uttar Pradesh and was twice elected as MLA fromHaidergarh in 2001 and 2002.[19] He was preceded byRam Prakash Gupta and succeeded byMayawati after 56 days ofPresident's rule.[27] He was also the last chief minister of Undivided U.P. Contributing to his appointment as state minister were his prior experience as education minister and hisgrassroots support from his involvement in the anti-corruptionJP Movement in the 1970's.[28][29] At that time there also many leaders inBJP from Uttar Pradesh, but very few had a strong support at the ground level.[30] He was at that time very much close toAtal Bihari Vajpayee and had a very clean image among the people of the State.[31] He also popular amongRajputs (Thakur), a significant community in the state,[32][33] likeBhairon Singh Shekhawat. Even unlike,L. K. Advani andKalyan Singh, he was not a leader ofFirebrand Hindutva ideology and was a very soft-spoken person.[34]
As chief minister of Uttar Pradesh, he accused theSamajwadi Party of favouring certain communities for jobs. Singh had said that discrimination in job opportunities should end in the state.[35] He tried to rationalise the reservation structure in government jobs by introducing the most Backward Classes among the OBC and SC, so that the reservation system could favour those at the bottom of society..[36]
When Singh took office as chief minister, Uttar Pradesh had the highest state crime rate in India. Singh thus made establishing law and order a key part of his policy.[37][38] However, after the2002 Gujarat riots a large portion of the Indian public saw theBJP as complicit in the riots, which undermined the image of Singh's party and contributed to the loss of his position..[39][40]
On 7 February 2001, Singh inaugurated theDND Flyway which connects Delhi to Noida.[41]
In the year 2002, Singh resigned from the position of chief minister after a 2 year tenure because at that time, the stateBJP Government held only a minority government. After his resignation, the state was underPresident's rule for 56 days, until the 14th Legislative Assembly appointedMayawati to the position of chief minister for the 3rd time.[12]
In 2003, Singh was appointed as theMinister of Agriculture and subsequently for Food Processing in theNDA Government led byAtal Bihari Vajpayee, and was faced with the difficult task of maintaining one of the most volatile areas of India's economy.[42] During this period he initiated a few epoch-making projects including the Kisan Call Centre and Farm Income Insurance Scheme.[43] He brought down interest rates on Agriculture loans and also established Farmer Commission and initiated Farms Income Insurance Scheme.[44]
After the BJP lost power in the2004 general elections, it was forced to sit in the Opposition. After the resignation of prominent figureLal Krishna Advani due to controversial statements overMuhammad Ali Jinnah,[45] and the murder of strategistPramod Mahajan, Singh sought to rebuild the party by focusing on the most basicHindutva ideologies.[46] He announced his position of "no compromise" in relation to the building of aRam Temple inAyodhya at any cost[46] and commended the rule of Vajpayee as Prime Minister, pointing towards all the developments theNDA made for the ordinary people of India.[47] He also criticised the role of the English language in India, claiming that most of Indian population is unable to participate in Indian economy and cultural discourse due to extreme preferences shown to English at the expense of native languages.[48] Singh also suspendedJaswant Singh from the party for praising Jinnah and disrespecting the policies ofJawaharlal Nehru, which also led to a wave of controversies as Jaswant Singh was a very senior leader of the party.[49] Singh had held many positions for the RSS and the BJP, including serving as theChief Minister of Uttar Pradesh and the President of the BJP'syouth wing. He advocated a return to aHindutva platform. Singh resigned after the NDA lost the2009 Indian general election.[50]
He became the BJP National President on 31 December 2005, a post he held till 19 December 2009. In May 2009, he was elected MP from Ghaziabad in Uttar Pradesh.[51]
On 24 January 2013, following the resignation ofNitin Gadkari due to corruption charges, Singh was re-elected as the BJP's National President.[52]
Singh was on record shortly after the lawSection 377 of the Indian Penal Code was re-instated in 2013, claiming that his party is "unambiguously" in favour of the law, also claiming that "We will state (at an all-party meeting if it is called) that we support Section 377 because we believe that homosexuality is an unnatural act and cannot be supported."[53] Singh was elected president for his second term after Gadkari stepped down in 2013. Singh played a large role in the BJP's campaign for the2014 Indian general election, including declaringNarendra Modi the party's Prime Ministerial candidate despite opposition from within the BJP. After the party's landslide victory, Singh resigned the party presidency to assume the position of Home Minister.[54]
Singh taking charge as the Union Minister for Home Affairs, in New Delhi on 29 May 2014.Singh holding a bilateral meeting with Russian delegation led by the Minister for Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Kolokolstsev, in Moscow
He triggered controversy amid the protests over the police action atJawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), on 14 February 2016, claiming that the "JNU incident" was supported byLashkar-e-Taiba chief Hafiz Saeed.[57] He gave the statement when there was an Anti-National speeches in theJNU Delhi over the anniversary of hanging of Kashmiri SeparistMaqbool Bhat andAfzal Guru on 9 February 2016.[58] After the statement there was also a vast protest against Singh and after the arrests ofUmar Khalid andKanhaiya Kumar, he made meeting with many left leaders.[59][60] He also assured the citizens that what he said was right and he also people assurance of not tolerating the Anti-National Acts.[61] Singh at that time also appointed an SIT for the investigation of the matter.[62]
In May 2016, he claimed that infiltration from Pakistan declined by 52% in a period of two years.[63]
On 9 April 2017, he launchedBharat Ke Veer Web portal and Application with Bollywood actorAkshay Kumar. This was an initiative taken by him for the welfare of Martyrs' family.[64]Bharat Ke Veer is a fund-raising initiative by theMinistry of Home Affairs,Government of India on behalf of members of the Indian paramilitary Forces.[65] Singh himself praised the app and at that time was the first donor of the app.[66]
Urban Development Minister of Nepal,Arjun Narsingh K.C. calling on the Singh, in New Delhi
Doklam is a disputed territory betweenBhutan and China since the 1950s and when China unilaterally claimed Doklam as its own territory by trying to build a road in the disputed area, the Indian army stepped-in on behalf of Bhutan which created tensions between the Indian Army and Liberation Army of China.[68] Over the matter Singh assured Public to solve the matter and he had talks with officials of theChinese Communist Party over relations between the two countries. Though the matter was between the Bhutan and China, but when Bhutan sought help from India, then India also indulged in the matter. Singh andPrime Minister Narendra Modi also openely opposed the matter and came in the support of Bhutan.[69] Later, the tension solved at large extent.[70][71] The main reason was also that Singh also threatened China to stop its import and start of Trade War.[70] On 9 October 2017 China announced that it was ready to maintain peace at frontiers with India reacting to IndianDefence MinisterNirmala Sitharaman and Rajnath Singh visit to Nathu La.[72]
On 21 May 2018, he commissionedBastariya Battalion. As Union Home Minister, Rajnath Singh attended the passing out parade of 241 Bastariya Battalion ofCRPF in Ambikapur, Chhattisgarh on 21 May 2018.[73]
Rajnath Singh taking charge as the Union Minister for Defence, in the presence ofShripad Naik, Minister of State for Defence, in New Delhi on 1 June 2019.Rajnath Singh takes office as the Minister of Defense of India for the second consecutive term, in New Delhi on 13 June 2024.
Singh became theDefence minister of India on 31 May 2019.[74] Singh was givenMinistry of Defence (India) afterAmit Shah was given theMinistry of Home Affairs (India). As Union Defence Minister now, Singh has indicated a subtle shift in India's strategic vision. Among the challenges that the Defence Minister is expected to address are the ever-increasing requirements of India's forces, including increased budgetary requirements, especially in the light of an unstable neighbourhood.[75]
Singh, along with Prime Minister Modi inaugurates Asia's largest helicopter manufacturing sector (HAL) atTumkur, inKarnataka in 2023.
After being Defence Minister he had focused mainly on increasing thedefence budget of the nation and has focused on decreasing the import ofweapons from other nations and making the nation an arms exporter with anarms industry.[76][77] He also stated that:
"India cannot put hand on hand in the issues of National Security. Now the time has come that India needs to emerge as major arms exporter."
India received the second fleet ofRafale jets on 29 July 2020. Singh said that "Those wanting to threaten India's territorial Integrity should be aware of India's new capability."[82]
China made transgression attempts on Line of Actual Control (LAC) in the western sector. This includes Kongka, Gogra, and the north bank of Pangong Lake. Our Army took necessary action against these attempts.
Then again from the date of 30 August 2020,People's Liberation Army started the controversy ofLadakh area by putting a large number of troops over the controversial area and over thisChinese Communist Party leaderYang Jiechi andPeople's Liberation Army General Wei stated that the matter was started by theIndian Armed Forces.[97] Chinese GeneralWei Fenghe and his Indian counterpart Singh held a talk, on 4 September in Moscow, on the sidelines of aShanghai Cooperation Organisation meeting.[98] On 10 September, the foreign affairs ministers of China and India met in Moscow. Five points were agreed upon in a joint statement, including new CBMs between the two countries. On 21 September, the sixth commander-level meeting took place at Chushul-Moldo BPM.[99] The Indian delegation consisted of Lt Gen Harinder Singh, Lt Gen P G K Menon, two major generals, four brigadiers and other officers.[100] The chief of theIndo-Tibetan Border Police was also a part of the delegation. During this meeting, for the first time, a Ministry of External Affairs representative from the Indian side was also present. Following the 14–hour talks, a joint statement was released, which included both sides have agreed to "stop sending more troops to the frontlines.[101][102]
After the news of the situation became known, Singh assured citizens that the situation is under control and that there is nothing to be worried about. Singh also stated that fake news and rumours were being spread. He also admitted that theChinese Army has tried to cross theLAC.[103]
Singh at theSCO defence ministers' meeting in New Delhi on 28 April 2023
On 28 April 2023, Chinese Defense MinisterLi Shangfu met with Rajnath Singh as part of theShanghai Cooperation Organisation defence ministers' meeting in New Delhi, making it the first visit to India by a Chinese Defence Minister since the 2020 border skirmishes between Indian and Chinese troops.[104]
On 26 June 2025, he visited China to attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation defence ministers' meeting in Qingdao, marking the first visit by a senior Indian minister to China since the 2020 border skirmishes and the first by an Indian Defence Minister in 12 years. During the meeting, Singh refused to sign the joint declaration, citing the document's failure to condemn the2025 Pahalgam attack inKashmir, which claimed 26 lives, and lack of alignment with India's stance against terrorism.[105][106]
Singh with Russian PresidentVladimir Putin in Moscow on 10 December 2024
On 10 December 2024, Singh held talks with Russian Defence MinisterAndrey Belousov. Singh reaffirmed India's commitment to strengthening defence ties with Russia.[107]
TheDefence Ministry introduced a revolutionary army recruitment scheme called Agnipath (Agneepatha), for recruitment of soldiers under the rank of commissioned officers. The recruitment was pursued for all the three forces, and the selected candidates were termed as "Agniveers". This plan is a four-year termed enroll to candidates ageing between 18 - 24 of age.[108] Various protests and oppositions were held, against the scheme, questioning about the future of the candidates, procedure and other standards. Railways were set on fire and suffered losses inBihar,Telangana andWest Bengal;[109] the opposition also called it as anRSS agenda based scheme. The Ministry called it a long pending reform, in the defence field to lower the average of the total military age.[110] Further theDelhi High Court also stated that it finds no reason to interfere in the process and the government has brought this "In national Interest" of the country.[111]
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He virtually inaugurated the four-day Indo-Pacific Military Health Exchange (IPMHE) conference.
International military exercises known asVostok-2022 [ru] were launched in Russia's Far East in September 2022, with countries including Russia, India and China taking part in it.[112] On 28 April 2023, Singh met with Russian Minister of DefenceSergei Shoigu.[113]
In July 2025, Rajnath Singh, addressing theIndian parliament, rejected US PresidentDonald Trump's claim that the United States had mediated the ceasefire between India and Pakistan in May, stating that India had not acted under any external pressure. Singh clarified that military operations, launched in response to thePahalgam Attack, ceased only after all political and military objectives were achieved. He further stated that the decision to halt "Operation Sindoor" followed a request from Pakistan's Director General of Military Operations, who sought relief from continued hostilities.[114][115]
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