New Delhi: Congress veterans Pranab Mukherjee, Arjun Singh, Pranab Mukherjee, Natwar Singh and Ghulam Nabi Azad along with several other Congress leaders returned to the corridors of power after a gap of nine years in the Manmohan Singh-led coalition Government.

Following are the brief profiles of those inducted into the Union Council of Ministers :

1) Arjun Singh: A known loyalist of Nehru-Gandhi family, the Congress stalwart has seen many political ups and downs since he became an independent MLA in Madhya Pradesh in 1957 after a brief stint of practising law. A Rajya Sabha member, Singh started his career as a student leader and had to fight allegations that his father Rao Shiv Bahadur Singh had committed forgery. In 1960 he joined Congress with the blessings of Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru and headed several Ministries in Madhya Pradesh between 1963 and 1977 when Congress was routed in the State and he became Leader of the Opposition. Within three years, however, he was back on the Treasury benches as Chief Minister and continued till 1985. Born on November 5, 1930, at Churhat in Sidhi district of Madhya Pradesh, Singh was Governor of Punjab when militancy was at its peak from March 1985 to November 1985 and played a key role in the signing of Punjab Accord by then Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi and Akali Dal leader Harchand Singh Longowal. He held Commerce, Communications and HRD portfolio at the Centre and also held office of AICC vice-president. Singh's difficult period started following differences over several issues including Babri Masjid demolition case, and he quit Union Ministry in December 1994 and was expelled from Congress in February 1995. He returned to the party in 1997 and today is a confidante of Congress president Sonia Gandhi. 2) Natwar Singh: A seasoned diplomat, 73-year-old Singh has made a mark as an able administrator, Parliamentarian and a tough negotiator on issues related to foreign affairs. After graduating from the prestigious St Stephen's College here and continuing his higher education at Cambridge and the Peking University in China, Singh headed Indian Missions in Poland, Zambia and Pakistan besides serving in Britain as Deputy High Commissioner. Elected to the eighth Lok Sabha in 1984, he joined the Rajiv Gandhi Government as Minister of State for Steel the next year. In 1986, he was appointed as MoS in the External Affairs Ministry and held the position for three years. Joining the Indian Foreign Service in 1953, Singh also served in New York and held important positions including Secretary in the MEA. He was a member of the Prime Minister's (Indira Gandhi) Secretariat from 1966 to 1971. Widely travelled, Singh has visited over 100 countries in connection with diplomatic and other official assignments. He accompanied then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi on her tours to 29 countries. A multifaceted personality, Singh, who married Heminder Kaur, eldest daughter of late Maharaja Yadvindra Singh of Patiala in 1967, is also a widely acclaimed writer.

3) Ghulam Nabi Azad: A successful politician who has never contested an election in his home State, he led Congress Party to victory in the 2002 Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir. Azad, who has played a long innings in Congress since the early 70s, is considered very close to 10, Janpath and was among the close coterie of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi in whose Government he held important Ministries like Home, Civil Aviation, Tourism and Parliamentary Affairs. 57-year-old Azad, who took over as Jammu and Kashmir Pradesh Congress Committee chief at a time when the party was in shambles, not only revived the almost dormant party but also led it from the front to victory in the 2002 Assembly polls and formed Government with PDP in the State. After the polls, he quit as the leader of Congress Legislature Party to pave way for Mufti Mohammed Sayeed to become Chief Minister. He has been a Member of Rajya Sabha since 1990. 4) Priya Ranjan Dasmunshi: A firebrand leader, he started his political career as student leader in his 30s and rose to become a top-ranking Congress leader at the national level. Born on August 5, 1945, Dasmunshi was initiated into politics as Chhatra Parishad president in 1966 and continued to steer the students wing of the Congress for a few years before graduating to electoral politics. Earning the distinction of defeating eminent freedom fighter and CPM leader Ganesh Ghosh in Calcutta South Lok Sabha constituency in 1971, Dasmunshi, however, lost the seat to Dilip Chakraborty of the Janata Party in 1977 in the wake of the anti-Indira Gandhi wave after the Emergency. Subsequently, he left Congress to join Congress-U but lost the 1980 Lok Sabha election in Purulia. Returning to Congress, he posted a remarkable win from the Howrah seat in the Parliamentary election held after the assassination of Indira Gandhi in 1984. Known for his oratorial skill, Dasmunshi was a Congress Working Committee member in 1972 during Indira Gandhi regime, president of All-India Youth Congress in 1972, WBPCC chief in 1985, besides holding the post of Union Minister of State for Commerce in the Rajiv Gandhi Cabinet in the following year. He was also Congress Party's chief whip in the 13th Lok Sabha. Dasmunshi's victory from Raiganj this year was his second consecutive win. He has a keen interest in sport and has been heading the All-India Football Federation as its president for the last 16 years. He is also member of the FIFA's Technical Committee and chairman of Asian Football Confederation's Women's Committee. 5) Kamal Nath: Considered close to late Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi from his Doon school days, industrialist-turned-politician Kamal Nath has seen both good and bad days in Congress, sometimes inducted into the Union Cabinet and sometimes being denied even a ticket to fight elections. He jumped into the political cauldron as a Youth Congress worker in 1968 and 12 years later, won the tribal-dominated and backward Chhindwara Lok Sabha seat in Madhya Pradesh, which has been his stronghold ever since. Born on November 18, 1948, the AICC general secretary is a Commerce graduate from St Xavier's College in Kolkata and was very close to Sanjay Gandhi. He was elected to Parliament from Chhindwara, which is covered by large tracts of lush tropical forests, in 1984, 1989, 1991, 1999 and 2004. In the mid-90s, however, the hawala-tainted Nath faced a political crisis as he was denied a ticket by Congress. Not one to be kept down for long, he soon made his comeback into the inner circles of Congress. In his three-and-a-half decade political career, Nath was inducted into the Union Council of Ministers and given charge of the Ministry of Environment and Forests in June 1991 and enunciated global concepts on environmental tariffs and conceptualised global emission quotes. During his tenure as Textiles Minister, India touched new heights in production and export of cotton. A new textile policy was launched to increase exports of garments and fabrics. 6) S Jaipal Reddy: An eloquent speaker and Congress' media-savvy face, Reddy once again makes his entry into Government with his experience as Information and Broadcasting Minister during the United Front Government. His erudition and ability to juggle with English language is something amazing for the son of a farmer who could not speak a word of English, nor did he learn English at a convent school. Undeterred by his physical handicap, having been afflicted with polio at the age of two, Reddy is rated as one of the best spokesmen. From Congress to Janata Dal and back to Congress after 24 years, it has been a long political journey for Reddy. A person who always maintained his cool and with his superb repartee in the House, he had the honour of getting the Best Parliamentarian Award. 7) Shivraj V Patil: For 69-year-old Patil, the return to the Cabinet was surprising given the fact that he had lost the recent Lok Sabha polls from Latur constituency of Maharasthra. Patil brings with him a rich and varied experience as Union Cabinet Minister having held charges of various Ministries during his political career as also that of Speaker of Lok Sabha. Patil had also been a Minister in Maharasthra and a Minister under Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi in the 1980s having served as Minister of State for Defence and Commerce with independent charge. 8) Sunil Dutt: For a man who has defied age and criss-crossed the country on foot, with the sole ambition of spreading the message of peace and communal harmony, actor-turned-activist Sunil Dutt's entry into the corridors of power has come after a long "padyatra". Born in Kurd (now in Pakistan) on June 6, 1929, Dutt suffered the travails and tribulations of partition. However, his mother's advice, that "those who wallow in the past only learn to hate and do not move ahead in life", spurred him ahead in life. As an undergraduate at Jai Hind College, Dutt joined a British advertising company to supplement his family income.

Graduation over, the good-looking Dutt was introduced to the world of films where he met many of the stalwarts, including his future wife Nargis. However the 1980s saw his life take a different turn, when cancer claimed his wife. A heart-broken Dutt turned to social work in a big way helping scores of others going through the trauma of cancer. His social work drew him to politics. His foray into politics in 1984 saw him tasting success in the hustings when he contested as a Congress candidate. The soft-spoken actor trounced heavyweight Ram Jethmalani during his maiden entry into the political arena. He was again elected in 1989 and 1991 and 1999. In 2004, he once again romped home again when he defeated Shiv Sena's firebrand leader Sanjay Nirupam.

9) Hans Raj Bhardwaj: A trusted lieutenant of late Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, H R Bhardwaj staged a comeback in his political career after eight long years. A Congressman to the core and a member of national executive of Indian Youth Congress from 1957, Bharadwaj had stood like a rock behind Gandhi during the post-Emergency black days for the Congress when he had defended then party supremo in many cases. The 67-year-old party veteran was holding the post of Minister of State for Law, Justice and Company Affairs in the Congress Government headed by Narasimha Rao during 1991-96. 10) Meira Kumar: Daughter of late Jagjivan Ram, a former IFS officer and elected to Lok Sabha from Sasaram constituency in Bihar, she makes her maiden entry into the Union Council of Ministers. Kumar, who has also represented Delhi's Karol Bagh seat in the Lok Sabha, had a brief association with BJP before returning to the Congress fold. As a Parliamentarian, the issues closest to her have been uplift of Scheduled Castes and Tribes, women, besides elimination of child labour.

11) Sis Ram Ola: For this 77-year-old farmer from Rajasthan, being in the Union Council of Ministers is nothing new and he brings with him his previous experience of holding charge of portfolios like Chemicals and Fertilizers and Water Resources. He was also a Minister in Rajasthan holding Cabinet rank for 10 years having held earlier posts of Zila Pramukh in Jhunjhunu from where he has been winning Lok Sabha elections. 12) S S Vaghela: Former Chief Minister of Gujarat, the 64-year-old veteran politician from Gujarat has had a varied experience having been a political worker since his youth. During his long Parliamentary career, he has served in various committees and contributed towards their deliberations. 13) P M Sayeed: A veteran Parliamentarian having represented the tiny island of Lakshdweep for 11 terms and unlucky to lose this time narrowly a seat which appeared to be his "permanently". The 63-year-old Congress leader has the experience of holding various Ministerial posts. He was also Deputy Speaker of the last Lok Sabha.

14) P Chidambaram: The Harvard-educated senior advocate was the Union Finance Minister in the United Front Government between 1996 and 1998. 58-year-old Chidambaram, elected to the Lok Sabha six times since 1984, was also Commerce Minister in the P V Narasimha Rao Government. Earlier he had also served as Minister for Personal Public Grievances and Pension and Internal Security (Home Department) in 1985 in the late Rajiv Gandhi Government. Chidambaram, who had his college education at Loyola, Presidency and Law Colleges in Chennai, securing first rank, completed his MBA from Harvard University (USA) at a young age of 23. An eloquent speaker in both English and Tamil, he practices in High Courts and the Supreme Court and is one of the solicitors taking part in arbitration cases abroad for multinational companies. He got involved in politics, trade union activities and law soon after his return from Harvard University. Chidambaram was recipient of "Asia's Best Finance Minister" award given by an Australian University in 1997. The same year the Union Budget presented by him was described as "Dream Budget" and widely acknowledged by a cross-section of the people and media. 15) Sharad Pawar: Known for his keen political acumen, his strong leadership and thorough study of caste politics, and popularly known as "Saheb" to the masses, Pawar has always been a man to reckon with whether inside the Congress or outside it. Born in December 1940, Pawar, a native of Baramati, became the president of the State Youth Congress at 24 and a member of the Maharashtra Assembly at 27 and Minister of State for Home five years later. In 1978, he became the Chief Minister after toppling the Congress Government of Vasantdada Patil, splitting the party, and forming a Government in coalition with the Janata Party under the banner of the Progressive Democratic Front. Becoming the youngest Chief Minister of Maharashtra at the age of 38, Pawar went on to don the Chief Minister's mantle on three more occasions -June '88 to February '89, March '89 to June '91 and March 1993 to March '95. Pawar, who had formed his Congress (S) in early '80s, returned to Congress fold in 1986 after Rajiv Gandhi took over, only to become the Chief Minister two years later in 1988. He was appointed Defence Minister in 1991 but came back to hold the State's reins in 1993 when he became the Chief Minister for the fourth time. In 1996 he was elected as a member of the Lok Sabha and became Leader of the Congress in the House. He was once again elected as MP in 1998 and went on to become the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha. He captured the Baramati seat in Western Maharashtra six times - 1984, 1991, 1996, 1998, 1999 and 2004. Pawar formed Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) in 1999 after walking out of Congress on Gandhi's foreign origin issue.

16) Laloo Prasad Yadav: The effervescent Laloo Yadav, who has weathered many a political storm and earned the sobriquet of "kingmaker", makes his debut in the Union Cabinet. Known for his wit and humour and unique rustic style by which he has won the heart of the masses, the RJD supremo rose from the ranks of a student leader during the days of the JP movement to a national-level politician. Yadav, who is in his 50s, was Chief Minister of Bihar twice between 1990 and 1997 before he bowed out of office handing over the reins of power to his wife Rabri Devi after the Supreme Court asked him to surrender before a trial court following a non-bailable arrest warrant against him in one of the conspiracy cases of the Rs 950-crore fodder scam. Yadav did his BA and LLB from Patna University. He made his first entry to the Lok Sabha in March 1977 from Chapra. He was a member of the State Assembly between 1980 and 1989 for two terms and was Leader of the Opposition between January 1989 and November 1989. 17) Ram Vilas Paswan: One of the tallest Dalit leaders, Paswan who heads the Lok Janshakti Party returns to the Union Government after a gap of two years. Parting ways with the NDA in 2002 in the wake of the post-Godhra communal violence in Gujarat, he quit the Janata Dal - United to float his new party. Born in Saharbani village of Khagaria district to an ordinary farmer in 1947, Paswan took a plunge into politics in the mid-'60s leaving a lucrative police job as Deputy Superintendent of Police. A close disciple of veteran socialist leader Ram Manohar Lohia, he became a member of the State Assembly for the first time from Aulauli seat in Khagaria in 1967. He rose to national politics in 1977 after he won Hajipur Lok Sabha seat on Janata Party ticket by a record margin of 4.24 lakh votes. He retained the seat in 1980 but lost in 1984 at the hands of Congress' Ram Ratan Ram. In the 2004 polls, Paswan won from Hajipur for the seventh time beating JD-U's Chedi Paswan by over 2.5 lakh votes. A votary of socialism, who did his MA and LLB from Patna University, Paswan has been a Member of Parliament eight times. 18) T R Baalu: A Minister in the previous National Democratic Alliance Government, T R Baalu has been elected MP for the fourth time from South Chennai constituency. 62-year-old Baalu, a BSc graduate and hailing from Tiruvarur district of Tamil Nadu, made his debut in 1996 and has since won from the same constituency in 1998, 1999 and 2004. He was MLA for 10 years from 1986 to 1996. In the Union Cabinet, Baalu had held various portfolios including Petroleum and Natural Gas and Environment and Forests. He has been with DMK since 1957 and was jailed for a year in 1976. 19) Dayanidhi Maran: Son of late Union Minister Murasoli Maran and grand nephew of DMK president M Karunanidhi, 34-year old Maran was elected to the Lok Sabha from the Central Chennai constituency in his maiden attempt to enter Parliament. After finishing his schooling at Don Bosco School in Chennai, Maran did his graduation in Economics from the city's Loyola College and MBA from Harvard University. From his school days, he had shown keen interest in politics. In 1994, he became the managing director of Sumangali Cable Vision, a private TV channel and multi-system operator, floated by the SUN TV group. When Dr Manmohan Singh and Kamal Nath came for talks to firm up the alliance for the Lok Sabha polls, Maran was one of those who represented the DMK.

20) Sibu Soren: A name synonymous with decades of Jharkhand agitation for Statehood, Sibu Soren is a charismatic tribal leader who has become a Union Minister for the first time. Known as a crusader for fulfillment of the aspirations of the tribals, Soren spearheaded the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) for realisation of the dream of a separate State. 'Guruji' to his supporters, the 62-year-old bearded tribal leader was born at Nimra Gaon in Hazaribag and studied in Gola High School, but dropped out after his father, a teacher by profession, was killed by landlords for leading against exploitation of the poor and timber smuggling. 21) Raghuvansh Prasad Singh: A socialist to the core, Raghuvansh Prasad Singh comes back to the Union Ministry after his two brief stints in the United Front Government. A product of JP movement, Singh had his baptism in politics in his young days when he took active part in political agitations and underwent imprisonment. Having won the Lok Sabha elections from Vaishali in Bihar for the fourth time in a row, Singh, born on June 1946, did his MSc and PhD and was a lecturer in Mathematics in Goenka College, Sitamarhi, under Bihar University. He was dismissed from the University service during Emergency and was reinstated later. He was Minister of State for Power in Bihar between 1977 and 1979 as he got his maiden entry to the State Assembly in 1977. Singh, a close aide of RJD boss Laloo Prasad Yadav, was Deputy Speaker of the State Assembly in 1990 when Yadav stormed to power in Bihar. 22) Paty Ripple Kyndiah: For Kyndiah, who made a hat-trick from Shillong Lok Sabha constituency this time, the journey had begun in 1962 when he first became municipal ward commissioner - much before the creation of Meghalaya as a State. He was re-elected and became chairman of the civic body in 1967, an office he held till 1972. After that he never looked back. One of the protagonists of Hill State movement, which spearheaded a peaceful agitation for a separate State for Meghalaya to be carved out from Assam, Kyndiah entered the provisional Meghalaya Assembly in 1970. From 1972 to 1993, he was a member of House. He was acting Chief Minister in 1987 and chairman of the high-powered Meghalaya Commission on Resource Mobilisation in 1988-89 before getting elected to the Speaker's chair. He had also served as Mizoram Governor from 1993 to 1998. A die-hard politician, Kyndiah did not confine himself to the Constitutional post and quit it to plunge into active politics. 23) A Raja: The 40-year-old Family Welfare Minister in the previous Vajpayee Government, A Raja had come out successful from Perambalur constituency. He holds degrees in BSc and ML. Raja made his electoral debut for the Lok Sabha polls in 1996 and defeated a Congress candidate. In 1998, he, however, lost to the AIADMK but came back strongly a year later in the 1999 polls, winning the seat with a good majority. Raja has been active in Dravidian movement right from his school days and later became a member of the DMK and held various positions in the party at district level. 24) R Anbumani: A doctor by profession, R Anbumani, who was appointed a Cabinet Minister in the Manmohan Singh-led Government, is a debutant in the Legislative field though his Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK) is one of the key allies of the Congress. Though the 36-year Anbumani, son of PMK chief S Ramadoss, is not a member of either House of Parliament, he is likely to be elected to the Rajya Sabha next month. An MBBS doctor, Anbumani is closely associated with his father in the party functions and is the organising secretary of the party in Tamil Nadu. Besides being a doctor, he studied economics in the London School of Economics. He also heads the "Pasumai Thayagam", a movement for the protection of greenery and environment.

24) Mani Shankar Aiyar: From the Indian Foreign Service to Cabinet minister has been a long journey for this effervescent Congressman from Tamil Nadu. The 63-year-old former bureaucrat had served under the late Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi. He took premature retirement from service to become a special assistant to Gandhi. Born in Lahore, he was educated in Delhi at St Stephen's College and went on to Cambridge.

25)Santosh Mohan Deb: A veteran parliamentarian, this 70-year-old Congress leader from Assam is known for his efficiency and quick decision-making as was seen during his earlier stints as minister in the Congress Governments.

The pipe-smoking Dev began public life as chairman of the municipal board of his home town of Silchar from where he was elected to the Lok Sabha for the first time in 1980. He retained the seat till 1996.