India’s First Governance
- First President of the Indian National Congress: Womesh Chandra Bannerjee, 1885
- First President of the Indian National Congress of independent India: Acharya Kripalani, until November 1947
- First President of India: Dr. Rajendra Prasad (1950–62)
- First Chief Election Commissioner of India: Sukumar Sen
- First Industries and Supplies Minister: Shyama Prasad Mukherjee
- First person to resign from the Central Cabinet: Shyama Prasad Mukherjee
- First Vice-President of India: Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan
- First Prime Minister of India: Jawaharlal Nehru (1947–64); India held its first constitutional elections in 1952 after which he was re-elected
- First Deputy Prime Minister of India: Vallabhbhai Patel (1947–50)
- First Minister of Law and Justice: B. R. Ambedkar
- First Leader of the Opposition: A. K. Gopalan
- First Prime Minister to be voted out of office: Indira Gandhi (1977), when the Indian National Congress lost to the Janata Party
- First Non-Congress government: Janata Party, with Morarji Desai as the Prime Minister (1977–1980)
- First Non-Congress State government with Majority by a single party: E. M. S. Namboodiripad of CPI, Kerala 1957
- First Prime Minister to lead a minority government for a full term (five years): P. V. Narasimha Rao, 21 June 1991 – 16 May 1996
- First Person outside the Nehru-Gandhi family to serve as Prime Minister for a full term (five years): P. V. Narasimha Rao, 21 June 1991 – 16 May 1996
- First Non Congress Prime Minister to serve a full term: Atal Bihari Vajpayee
- First Prime Minister from South India: P. V. Narasimha Rao, 1991, H.D.Deve Gowda
- First Viceroy of India: Lord Canning, 1858
- First Governor-General of India: Lord William Bentinck, 1833
- First Governor-General of Independent India: Lord Mountbatten, 1947
- First Indian Governor-General of Indian Union: C. Rajagopalachari, 1948
- First Chief Justice of India: H. J. Kania (1947–51)
- First Sikh Prime Minister: Manmohan Singh (2004–14)
- First Muslim President: Zakir Hussain (1967–69)
- First Sikh President: Giani Zail Singh
- First Indian ICS Officer: Satyendranath Tagore, 1863
- First Speaker of Lok Sabha: G. V. Mavlankar (1952–56)
- First Finance Minister of Independent India: R. K. Shanmukham Chetty (1947–49), for others see First Nehru ministry
- First Presentation of the first budget after India’s Independence: R. K. Shanmukham Chetty on 26 November 1947
- First Home Minister of India: Sardar Vallabhai Patel
- First Indian President to die in Office: Zakir Hussain, 3 May 1969
- First Actor to become Chief Minister in India: M. G. Ramachandran, Tamil Nadu.
- First Actress to become Chief Minister in India: Janaki Ramachandran, Tamil Nadu.
- First Actress to become Chief Minister in India by winning election: J. Jayalalithaa, Tamil Nadu.
- First Chief Minister to die in Office: Gopinath Bordoloi, Assam.
- First Woman Chief Minister to die in Office: J. Jayalalithaa, Tamil Nadu.
- First Indian Prime Minister to resign from office: Morarji Desai, 1979
- First Woman Indian Prime Minister to die in Office: Indira Gandhi, 1984
- First Prime Minister born after India’s independence: Narendra Modi, born 17 September 1950
- First Chairperson of Lokpal of India: Pinaki Chandra Ghose