New Delhi, Jul 7 (FN Bureau) Prime Minister Narendra Modi here on Wednesday carried out a major reshuffle of his two-year-old council of ministers by dropping 12 ministers, including Health Minister Harsh Vardhan, Law and Information Technology Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad and Information and Broadcasting Minister Prakash Javadekar and bringing in several new faces and elevating number of junior ministers. Altogether 43 ministers were sworn in by President Ram Nath Kovind at a ceremony at the Rashtrapati Bhavan.
In a massive Cabinet reshuffle, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday replaced the Union Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan, Information and Broadcasting Minister Prakash Javadekar and Minister of Electronics and Information Technology Ravi Shankar Prasad. Former MoS Shipping Mansukh Mandaviya was inducted as the new Health Minister, while Anurag Singh Thakur got the charge of Minister of Information and Broadcasting replacing Mr Javadekar. Thakur was also given an additional charge of Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports while Mandaviya will also work as the Minister of Chemicals and Fertilizers. Ashwini Vaishnav was inducted as the new Minister of Communications and Minister of Electronics and Information Technology replacing Mr Prasad along with additional charge of Minister of Railways. The portfolios of top four Ministries– Defence, Home, Finance and External Affairs– remained untouched. In all, 43 ministers were sworn-in —15 of Cabinet rank, the remaining 28 as ministers of state– by President Ram Nath Kovind at a ceremony at the Rashtrapati Bhavan.
Omission of senior leaders, which also included Ramesh Pokhriyal and Santosh Gangwar in the first-ever cabinet reshuffle since Mr Modi assumed charge for a second term in May 2019, sprang a surprise. Foe-turned-friend Jyotiraditya Scindia was named as the new Civil Aviation Minister, a much-awaited development since he joined the saffron factions last year, dumping the Indian National Congress. Replacing Mr Ramesh Pokhriyal, Mr Dharmendra Pradhan was made the new Minister of Education and Skill Development. This is the first time that the Education & Skill Development ministries have been clubbed together. The saffron party’s firebrand leader Smriti Zubin Irani was made the Woman and Child Development Minister. She was also asked to look after the Swacch Bharat Mission. Former Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal, who recently gave up his Chief Ministership to adjust Himanta Biswa Sarma, was named as the new Ports and Shipping Minister. He will also hold charge of AYUSH Ministry. Union Home Minister Amit Shah, apart from heading the top ministerial portfolio, has also been assigned the charge of newly formed Ministry of Cooperation.
Former Sports Minister Kiren Rijiju is the new Minister of Law and Justice replacing Mr Prasad. The newly inducted Dr Virendra Kumar will head the Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment while another fresh entrant Ramchandra Prasad Singh was made the new Minister of Steel. The post of Minister of Food Processing Industries, which fell vacant after Shiromani Akali Dal’s Harsimrat Kaur Badal revolted against the government over the three agriculture reform laws and resigned in November last, was given to Pashu Pati Kumar Paras. Over the inclusion of Mr Paras in the Union Cabinet, a visibly upset Chirag Paswan said that he has moved the Delhi High Court. “There is full respect for right of PM Modi as to who he includes in his team and who he does not. But as far as LJP is concerned, Paras ji is not a member of our party,” he said.