Bhagat Singh Koshyari
A former Uttarakhand Chief Minister and Governor of Maharashtra who began as a teacher in the hills, honoured with the Padma Bhushan in 2026.
- Padma Bhushan 2026
- Uttarakhand
Heroes in Public Affairs
Showing 1–24 of 32 heroes
Bijoya Chakravarty
A former college teacher and athlete from Assam, four times a member of Parliament and once a Union minister, honoured with the Padma Shri in 2021.
- Padma Shri 2021
- Assam
Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee
A former West Bengal chief minister, from 2000 to 2011, who declined the Padma Bhushan announced for him in 2022. He died in 2024.
- Padma Bhushan 2022
- West Bengal
C.S. Vaidyanathan
A Supreme Court senior advocate with more than fifty years of practice and India's first Additional Solicitor General, honoured with the Padma Shri in 2025.
- Padma Shri 2025
- Delhi
Ghulam Nabi Azad
A former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister and Union minister, including for health from 2009 to 2014, honoured with the Padma Bhushan in 2022.
- Padma Bhushan 2022
- Jammu and Kashmir
Jagdish Singh Khehar
The 44th Chief Justice of India, whose Supreme Court judgments included the NJAC and triple talaq cases, honoured with the Padma Vibhushan in 2025.
- Padma Vibhushan 2025
- Chandigarh
K. T. Thomas
A former Supreme Court judge known for his work on criminal law and police reform, honoured with the Padma Vibhushan in 2026.
- Padma Vibhushan 2026
- Kerala
Kabindra Purkayastha
A teacher and three-time Silchar MP who served as Union Minister of Communications in 1998–99, honoured posthumously with the Padma Shri in 2026.
- Padma Shri 2026 (posthumous)
- Assam
Kalyan Singh
A former Uttar Pradesh chief minister, Lok Sabha member and Governor of Rajasthan, honoured posthumously with the Padma Vibhushan in 2022.
- Padma Vibhushan 2022 (posthumous)
- Uttar Pradesh
Keshubhai Patel
A farmer's son who served twice as chief minister of Gujarat and as a member of both houses of Parliament, honoured posthumously with the Padma Bhushan in 2021.
- Padma Bhushan 2021 (posthumous)
- Gujarat
M. Fathima Beevi
The first woman judge of the Supreme Court of India and later Governor of Tamil Nadu, honoured posthumously with the Padma Bhushan in 2024.
- Padma Bhushan 2024 (posthumous)
- Kerala
M. Venkaiah Naidu
A political leader for five decades and Vice-President of India from 2017 to 2022, honoured with the Padma Vibhushan in 2024.
- Padma Vibhushan 2024
- Andhra Pradesh
Malji bhai Desai
A Gandhian from Patan who founded the Gandhi Ashram at Zilia in 1964 and has set up more than 30 schools in north Gujarat, honoured with the Padma Shri in 2022.
- Padma Shri 2022
- Gujarat
Manda Krishna Madiga
A Telangana activist who led a 30-year movement for sub-classification of Scheduled Castes, honoured with the Padma Shri in 2025.
- Padma Shri 2025
- Telangana
Manohar Joshi
A teacher and businessman who became Mumbai's mayor, Maharashtra's chief minister and Lok Sabha Speaker, honoured posthumously with the Padma Bhushan in 2025.
- Padma Bhushan 2025 (posthumous)
- Maharashtra
Mulayam Singh Yadav
Three-time Uttar Pradesh chief minister, Union defence minister and founder of the Samajwadi Party, honoured posthumously with the Padma Vibhushan in 2023.
- Padma Vibhushan 2023 (posthumous)
- Uttar Pradesh
Narayan (Bhulai Bhai)
A teacher and grassroots leader from Kushinagar who served as an MLA and worked for the Dhobi community, honoured posthumously with the Padma Shri in 2025.
- Padma Shri 2025 (posthumous)
- Uttar Pradesh
Narendra Chandra Debbarma
A former AIR station director who founded the Indigenous People's Front of Tripura and became a minister, honoured posthumously with the Padma Shri in 2023.
- Padma Shri 2023 (posthumous)
- Tripura
O. Rajagopal
A veteran Kerala politician, former Union minister and the BJP's first member of the Kerala legislative assembly, honoured with the Padma Bhushan in 2024.
- Padma Bhushan 2024
- Kerala
Ram Naik
A Mumbai politician who won eight straight elections, served as a Union minister and as Governor of Uttar Pradesh, honoured with the Padma Bhushan in 2024.
- Padma Bhushan 2024
- Maharashtra
Ram Vilas Paswan
A Bihar leader who won nine Lok Sabha elections and founded the Lok Janshakti Party, honoured posthumously with the Padma Bhushan in 2021.
- Padma Bhushan 2021 (posthumous)
- Bihar
S M Krishna
A former Karnataka chief minister and External Affairs Minister who backed Bengaluru's tech growth, honoured with the Padma Vibhushan in 2023. He died in 2024.
- Padma Vibhushan 2023
- Karnataka
Satya Brata Mookherjee
A Calcutta barrister in company law who served as a Union minister, honoured posthumously with the Padma Bhushan in 2024.
- Padma Bhushan 2024 (posthumous)
- West Bengal
Shibu Soren
Founder of the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha and three-time Chief Minister of Jharkhand, honoured posthumously with the Padma Bhushan in 2026.
- Padma Bhushan 2026 (posthumous)
- Jharkhand