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| Prime Minister Narender Modi with his council of ministers at the swearing-in ceremony at Rashtrapati Bhawan, in New Delhi on Monday. Photo: Rajeev Bhatt |
The following is the list of council of ministers in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Cabinet
Cabinet Ministers
Rajnath Singh: Home Minster
He served as Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh and became the Minister of
Agriculture in the NDA government in May 2003. After BJP lost the 2004
general elections, he was appointed as the party president and was again
elected for the post in January 2013. Despite opposition, he had stood
by Narendra Modi to anoint him as the party's prime ministerial
candidate.
Sushma Swaraj: External Affairs & Overseas Indian Affairs
She was the Leader of Opposition in the15th Lok Sabha. One of the best
orators, Ms. Swaraj has been elected seven times as a Member of
Parliament and three times as a Member of the Legislative Assembly. At
the age of 25, she became Haryana's youngest Cabinet Minister and has
also served as the first woman Chief Minister of Delhi.
Arun Jaitley: Finance Corporate Affairs & Defence
He is an eminent lawyer who was Union Minister for Commerce and
Industry, Law and Justice in the NDA government (1998-2004). He was the
Leader of the Opposition in Rajya Sabha (2009-2014). He started his
political career as a student union leader. During the movement against
the Emergency, he remained under preventive detention for 19 months.
M. Venkaiah Naidu: Urban Development Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation & Parliamentary Affairs
He has served as the BJP president from 2002 to 2004. He was earlier the
Union Minister for Rural Development in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee
government. He was elected twice as an MLA in the Andhra Pradesh
Legislative Assembly. He was a three-time Rajya Sabha Member from
Karnataka since 1998.
Nitin Jairam Gadkari: Road Transport and Highways Shipping
He was appointed as BJP president in December 2009 shortly after the
party lost the Lok Sabha elections. However, he had to make way for
Rajnath Singh following a controversy over suspected financial dealings
of a business group said to be associated with him. Previously a Public
Works Department Minister in the Maharashtra government (1995-99), he
has also served as the president of the Maharashtra BJP.
D.V. Sadananda Gowda: Railways
He was sworn in as the 20th Chief Minister of Karnataka in August 2011
after the resignation of B. S. Yeddyurappa. He was also president of the
Karnataka BJP. He resigned as Chief Minister in July 2012 and was later
the Leader of Opposition of the Karnataka Legislative Council.
Uma Bharati: Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation
She won elections from the Khajuraho seat in 1989 and retained the seat
in 1991, 1996 and 1998. She won the Bhopal seat in 1999 and became the
Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister in 2003. In the Vajpayee government, she
held various portfolios. She emerged as a prominent leader during the
Ram Janmabhoomi movement
Dr. Najma A. Heptulla: Minority Affairs
Grand-niece of Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, Dr. Heptullah was vice-president
of the BJP. She was a Rajya Sabha Member from July 2004 to July 2010.
She was again nominated by the BJP for Rajya Sabha in 2012. She
contested the 13th vice-presidential elections in August 2007, but lost
to Hamid Ansari.
Gopinathrao Munde: Rural Development, Panchayati Raj & Drinking Water and Sanitation
He was Member of the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly for five terms and
was the Leader of Opposition in the Assembly during 1992-1995. He also
served as Deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra in 1995-1999. He was
elected to 15th Lok Sabha in 2009 and served as Deputy Leader of the
BJP.
Ramvilas Paswan: Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution
Ram Vilas Paswan, president of the Lok Janshakti Party, is the
eight-time Lok Sabha Member and also a former Rajya Sabha MP. He was
first elected to the Bihar Legislative Assembly in 1969 and to the Lok
Sabha in 1977. He formed the LJP in 2000 and joined the UPA government
in which he held the portfolios of Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers
and Ministry of Steel. He had lost the 2009 general elections.
Kalraj Mishra: Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises
Kalraj Mishra was president of the Uttar Pradesh BJP. He was a Cabinet
Minister in Uttar Pradesh government in the Kalyan Singh, Ram Prakash
Gupta and Rajnath Singh governments. Also a former Rajya Sabha member,
he won the 16th general elections from Deoria parliamentary
constituency.
Maneka Gandhi: Women and Child Development
A seven-time Lok Sabha Member, Ms. Gandhi is animal rights activist and
an environmentalist, who remained a minister in four governments. She
was first elected to the 9th Lok Sabha in 1989 from Pilibhit
parliamentary constituency, served as Union Minister of State,
Environment and Forests, and Union Minister of State, Programme
Implementation.
Ananthkumar: Chemicals and Fertilizers
A six-time parliamentarian, he was first elected from Bangalore South
Lok Sabha constituency to the 11th Lok Sabha in 1996. He was a Minister
in the Vajpayee government and held various portfolios, including
tourism, sports & youth affairs, culture, urban development and
poverty alleviation. He became the BJP Karnataka president in 2003 and
in 2004, was appointed as the party’s national general secretary.
Ravi Shankar Prasad: Communications and Information Technology & Law and Justice
He was the Deputy Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha. A senior
Supreme Court advocate, Mr. Prasad held the portfolios of Minister of
State in the Ministry of Coal and Mines, Ministry of Law and Justice,
and the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting in the Atal Bihari
Vajpayee government. He was thrice elected to the Upper House.
Ashok Gajapathi Raju: Civil Aviation
During his political career spanning about 36 years, he was elected as
an MLA seven times, first as Janata Party candidate in 1978 and then as a
TDP candidate. He held various ministries in the Andhra Pradesh
government. Mr. Raju won the 16th Lok Sabha elections from Vizianagaram
in Andhra Pradesh.
Anant Geete: Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises
A Shiv Sena leader, he has been elected six times to the Parliament. He
served as Union Minister of State, Ministry of Finance, Banking and
Expenditure (Jul 2002 - Aug 2002) and Union Cabinet Minister, Power,
(Aug 2002 - May 2004) in the Vajpayee government.
Harsimrat Kaur Badal: Food Processing Industries
A member of parliament for Bathinda representing Shiromani Akali Dal,
Ms. Kaur is the wife of Deputy Chief Minister of Punjab Sukhbir Singh
Badal and daughter-in-law of Punjab Chief Minister Prakash Singh Badal.
She started her political career in 2009 when she was elected to the
15th Lok Sabha.
Narendra Singh Tomar: Mines & Steel Labour and Employment
A BJP leader who began his political career as a member of the party’s
youth forum in Madhya Pradesh and remained a member of State Legislative
Assembly from 1998 to 2008. He served as a Minister in the State
government and was elected the BJP State unit president in 2006. He
became a Rajya Sabha Member in 2009 and was subsequently elected to the
15th Lok Sabha.
Jual Oram: Tribal Affairs
He represents the Sundargarh constituency of Odisha and was also a
member of the 12th, 13th and 14th Lok Sabha. He has served as a Cabinet
Minister in the Vajpayee government. He is the BJP vice-president and
has earlier served the party as its Odisha unit president.
Radha Mohan Singh: Agriculture
A four-time Lok Sabha member, he was president of BJP’s State unit from
2006 to 2009. He represents Purvi Champaran parliamentary constituency
in Bihar. He started his political career as a member of the Akhil
Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad in 1967 and rose up to become the BJP’s
Bihar unit president in 2006.
Thaawar Chand Gehlot: Social Justice and Empowerment
Presently the BJP national general secretary, he is a Dalit community
leader who was earlier a Lok Sabha Member from Dewas parliamentary
constituency between 1996 and 2009. He lost the 2009 general elections
and became a Rajya Sabha member in 2013.
Smriti Zubin Irani: Human Resource Development
A finalist in the Femina Miss India beauty pageant in 1998, she became
popular as TV serial actor. Ms. Irani joined the BJP in 2003 and
contested the 14th Lok Sabha elections from the Chandni Chowk
constituency in Delhi, but lost to Congress candidate Kapil Sibal in
2004. She was elected as a Rajya Sabha Member in August 2011 and
unsuccessfully contested the 2014 elections against Congress
vice-president Rahul Gandhi.
Dr. Harsh Vardhan: Health and Family Welfare
A BJP leader, Dr. Vardhan never lost any Delhi Assembly elections since
1993. He has served in various capacities as Health Minister, Law
Minister and Education Minister in the Delhi cabinet during 1993–98. He
was the BJP’s chief ministerial candidate in the 2013 State Assembly
elections. In the 2014 general elections, he won from the Chandni Chowk
constituency against Congress candidate Kapil Sibal.
Ministers of State
General V.K. Singh: Development of North Eastern Region (Independent Charge) & External Affairs Overseas Indian Affairs
He is a former Chief of Army Staff who took the Central Government to
court on the issue of his age. He won the 16th Lok Sabha elections from
Ghaziabad constituency with the second highest margin of 5.67 lakh
votes. Following retirement, he had joined hands with Anna Hazare, who
spearheaded anti-corruption movement.
Inderjit Singh Rao: Planning (Independent Charge), Statistics and Programme Implementation (Independent Charge) & Defence
A four-time MP, Mr. Singh quit the Congress party in February to join
the BJP. He has been a four-time MLA in the Haryana State Assembly. Son
of former Union Minister Rao Birender Singh, the BJP MP was first
elected to the Lok Sabha in 1998 on a Congress ticket and was posted as
Union Minister of State of External Affairs and Defence Production in
2004-09.
Santosh Kumar Gangwar: Textiles
(Independent Charge), Parliamentary Affairs Water Resources, River
Development and Ganga Rejuvenation
A Member of the 16th Lok Sabha on a BJP ticket, he previously served as a
former Union Minister of State. He was a Member of Parliament from
Bareilly since 1989, but lost the elections in 2009. He was also the
chief whip of the BJP in 14th Lok Sabha.
Shripad Yesso Naik: Culture (Independent Charge) & Tourism (Independent Charge)
A fourth-term MP from Panaji constituency in Goa, Mr. Naik was also a Minister
of State in the Atal Behari Vajpayee government in 2000-2004. He held
the seat in 2004, 2009 and 2014 general elections. Considered a
competitor to Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar in Goa BJP, Naik belongs
to influential Bhandari community which constitutes 27 per cent of Goa's
population.
Dharmendra Pradhan: Petroleum and Natural Gas (Independent Charge)
Son of former BJP MP Dr. Debendra Pradhan, he was elected to Rajya Sabha
in 2012 from Bihar and became a member of the 14th Lok Sabha from the
Deogarh constituency in Odisha. He was the party’s general secretary and
was also given the responsibility to supervise party activities in
Jharkhand in 2011.
Sarbananda Sonowal: Skill Development, Entrepreneurship, Youth Affairs and Sports (Independent Charge)
He is the Assam unit president and also a national executive member of
the BJP, credited with leading the BJP to a victory on seven of the 14
seats in the State in the 16th Lok Sabha elections. He represents the
Lakhimpur constituency. Mr. Sonowal was earlier the president of the All
Assam Students Union between 1992 and 1999. He was a member of the Asom
Gana Parishad till 2011, after which he joined the BJP.
Prakash Javadekar: Information and
Broadcasting (Independent Charge), Environment, Forest and Climate
Change (Independent Charge) & Parliamentary Affairs
BJP’s official spokesperson, Mr. Javdekar was elected to the Rajya Sabha
in 2008. He was instrumental in lodging complaint against alleged
irregularities in the allocation of coal blocks during the UPA regime. A
former banker, Mr. Javdekar is also in-charge of the BJP Economic Forum
and cells related to economy. He was previously a member of the
Maharashtra Legislative Council for two terms.
Piyush Goyal: Power (Independent Charge), Coal (Independent Charge) & New and Renewable Energy (Independent Charge)
He is BJP’s national treasurer. He heads the party’s information
communication campaign committee. Son of senior BJP leader Vedprakash
Goyal, the BJP leader has been on the Parliamentary Standing Committee
on Finance and the Consultative Committee for the Ministry of Defence as
a Rajya Sabha MP from Maharashtra. An all-India second rank holder
chartered accountant, he is also a prominent investment banker with top
corporate entities.
Dr. Jitendra Singh: Science and Technology
(Independent Charge), Earth Sciences (Independent Charge), Prime
Minister Office Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions Department
of Atomic Energy Department of Space
He is professor of Diabetes & Endocrinology and a medial
practitioner. He is a member of the BJP national executive and also the
chief party spokesperson in Jammu and Kashmir. He has been elected to
the 16th Lok Sabha from the Udhampur parliamentary constituency in
Jammu.
Nirmala Sitharaman: Commerce and Industry (Independent Charge), Finance Corporate Affairs
An articulate national spokesperson for the BJP, Ms. Sitharaman did her
post-graduation from the Jawaharlal Nehru University. She earlier worked
with the BBC and also with the PricewaterhouseCoopers as a researcher.
On her return from London, she was nominated to the National Commission
for Women and then joined the party.
G.M. Siddeshwara: Civil Aviation
He has been elected from the Davangere constituency of Karnataka on a
BJP ticket for the third term since 2004. His father late G.
Mallikarjunappa, who was earlier associated with the RSS, was also an
M.P. for two terms. Mr. Siddeswara has served as the BJP Karnataka
vice-president of the Karnataka BJP (2009-2010) and the BJP National
Parliamentary Party Treasurer from 2004-2014
Manoj Sinha: Railways
Manoj Sinha, an M.Tech in civil engineering from the Indian Institute of
Technology, represents the Ghazipur constituency of Bihar. He remained a
member of the party’s national council from 1989 to 1996. He was first
elected to the Lok Sabha in 1996 and then in 1999. Mr. Sinha has also
elected as the president of the Banaras Hindu University in 1983.
Upendra Kushwaha: Rural Development, Panchayati Raj & Drinking Water and Sanitation
An MP from Karakat constituency of Bihar, Mr. Kushwaha was earlier a
member of the Rajya Sabha. He founded the Rashtriya Lok Samata Party in
2013 and entered into a pre-poll alliance with the BJP in February to
contest election against the Congress, the RJD and the Janata Dal
(United). His party candidates won all the seats -- Sitamarhi, Karakat
and Jahanabad – on which it contested Lok Sabha elections.
Radhakrishnan P: Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises
He has earlier served as the Minister of State for Youth affairs and
also for Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation in the Vajpayee
government. Mr. Radhakrishnan, who was this time elected to the Lok
Sabha from Kanyakumari in Tamil Nadu, is the president of the BJP’s
Tamil Nadu unit. He had lost the 2009 Lok Sabha and the 2011 State
Assembly elections.
Kiren Rijiju: Home Affairs
A BJP leader from Arunachal Pradesh, who dethroned sitting Congress MP
Takam Sanjoy by a margin of 47,424. He was earlier a member of the 14th
Lok Sabha from the same constituency. Mr. Rijiju is also the BJP
national secretary.
Krishan Pal: Road Transport and Highways Shipping
He started his political career as a student union leader. He entered
electoral politics in 1994 when he was elected as a Corporation
councillor. Mr. Gurjar contested Haryana Vidhan Sabha elections in 1996
and won from the Melva Maharajpur constituency. The same year he was
appointed as Transport Minister in the State government. A three-time
MLA, he was also the party’s State unit president.
Dr. Sanjeev Kumar Balyan: Agriculture & Food Processing Industries
He was elected to the 16th Lok Sabha from Muzaffarnagar constituency of
Uttar Pradesh. A PhD in Veterinary Anatomy from the Haryana Agricultural
University at Hissar, he was also an Assistant Professor in the same
institution before he joined the Haryana Government as a veterinary
surgeon. Mr. Baliyan resigned about two years ago to join a real estate
firm as business partner.
Mansukhbhai Dhanjibhai Vasava: Tribal Affairs
He was elected to the 12th Lok Sabha in a 1998 bye-election from Broach
constituency in Gujarat. He was re-elected to the lower house in 1999,
2004 and 2009 from the same constituency, which was renamed as Bharuch
in 2008.
Raosaheb Dadarao Danve: Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution
A Lok Sabha representative from Jalna constituency of Maharashtra, he
also is a BJP member. He was earlier a member to the 13th, 14th and 15th
Lok Sabha from the same constituency. Mr. Danve was previously a
two-time MLA.
Vishnu Deo Sai: Mines, Steel & Labour and Employment
As BJP’s State unit president, Mr. Sai was instrumental in the party’s
phenomenal performance in Chhattisgarh where the BJP bagged 10 of the 11
Lok Sabha seats. Under his leadership in the State, the party had
secured as many seats in 2009. He contested the State Assembly elections
for the first time in 1990 and went on to become an MP in 1999. He
continues to hold the seat.
Sudarshan Bhagat: Social Justice and Empowerment
Sudarshan Bhagat represents Lohardaga parliamentary constituency of
Jharkhand. He was first elected as member of the State Legislative
Assembly in 2000. He held various portfolios between 2000 and 2005. Mr.
Bhagat was elected to the 15th Lok Sabha and served as a member in
standing committees on Labour and the Consultative Committee, Ministry
of Tribal Affairs.
Nihalchand: Chemicals and Fertilizers
He won the Ganganagar Lok Sabha seat of Rajasthan by defeating Congress candidate Master Bhanwar Lal Meghwal.
Source : http://www.thehindu.com/
