Disclosed is an improved process for preparing 1-chloro-2,4-diaminobenzene by the selective hydrogenation of 1-chloro-2,4-dinitro-benzene wherein the hydrogenation is carried out in the presence of a modified Raney nickel catalyst containing about 70 to 95 weight percent nickel, about 4 to 10 weight percent aluminum, about 0.1 to 4 weight percent molybdenum, and from 0 to about 20 weight percent cobalt. The 1-chloro-2,4-diaminobenzene is useful as an intermediate for disperse dyes and for color photography.