Ex-PM's personnel caught in knees-up periodically (5)
I believe the answer is:
nehru
'ex-pm's' is the definition.
I can't tell whether this defines the answer.
'personnel caught in knees-up periodically' is the wordplay.
'personnel' becomes 'HR' (Human Resources).
'caught in' is an insertion indicator.
'periodically' indicates alternate letters (letters must be selected 'every so often').
'knees'+'up'='kneesup'
The alternate letters of 'kneesup' are 'neu'.
'hr' put into 'neu' is 'NEHRU'.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for nehru that I've seen before include "First prime minister of 5" , "India's first prime minister" , "Indian prime minister, father of Indira Gandhi" , "First prime minister of India" , "Former Indian leader" .)