Political Career
In 1984 Singh joined the Congress Party and was elected to the eighth Lok Sabha from Bharatpur constituency in Rajasthan. In 1985 he became a minister of state in Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi's council with the portfolios of steel, coal and mines, and agriculture. In 1986, he became minister of state for external affairs i.e. in charge of foreign relations and stayed in this post until 1989, when the government was defeated in the general elections. He was then elected President of the UN Conference on Disarmament and Development held in New York in 1987. He led the Indian delegation to the 42nd Session of the UN General Assembly.
In the 1989 general elections, he contested and lost the Mathura seat.
During the Narsimha Rao Government Singh, along with Arjun Singh & N D Tiwari, had differences with Narsimha Rao and thence left the Congress Party to form the All India Indira Congress (Tiwari). Singh returned in the twelfth Lok Sabha again in 1998 from Bharatpur, but this time in opposition. He was elected to the Rajya Sabha from Rajasthan in 2002 and when the Congress came back to power, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh appointed him to the cabinet as Minister for External affairs on May 23. He had a controversial tenure and was widely criticized for his allegedly intemperate remarks. He was later suspended and then had to resign from the government in the wake of the Iraqi food-for-oil scam. His son Jagat Singh was also expelled from the Congress. Natwar made the announcement in the presence of Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje Scindia at a Bharatiya Janata Party-sponsored Jat rally in Vidyadhar Nagar. He also launched a blistering attack on Sonia Gandhi.
Thereafter, in mid 2008 both Natwar and his son joined Mayawati's BSP only to be expelled later in November, 2008. He and Jagat were expelled from BSP for indulging in anti-party activities and were accused of indiscipline and lack of faith in the Bahujan Samaj Movement. Natwar Singh was demanding a Rajya Sabha seat which was refused, four months after he joined Uttar Pradesh's ruling party.
Read more about this topic: K. Natwar Singh
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