JP Nadda returns to Modi cabinet; Anurag dropped
As Narendra Modi took oath as the Prime Minister for the third time, the ceremony also witnessed the swearing-in of 72 ministers of the NDA government, including Jagat Prakash Nadda.
As Narendra Modi took oath as the Prime Minister for the third time, the ceremony also witnessed the swearing-in of 72 ministers of the NDA government, including Jagat Prakash Nadda.
The 63-year-old took oath as a cabinet minister, becoming the sole representative from Himachal Pradesh in the BJP-led government. Nadda, who had previously been an MLA in the Himachal Pradesh legislative assembly, took oath as Union minister in Modi 3.0 cabinet. Nadda’s tenure as the head of the ruling party will end this month. He was the Union health minister in the first cabinet of PM Modi from 2014 to 2019.
However, BJP MP Anurag Thakur, who won the Lok Sabha election for the fifth time from Hamirpur, did not figure in the list of ministers. Anurag was the information and broadcasting minister in the previous government. A party insider in Hamirpur said that they were expecting and waiting for Anurag to be among those who will be sworn in on Sunday. However, they said that they are expecting some portfolio for the MP soon.
So far there have been only five leaders from Himachal Pradesh (HP) who have held the Union cabinet ranks: Shanta Kumar, Virbhadra Singh, Anand Sharma, JP Nadda, and Anurag Thakur.
The Modi 3.0 cabinet comprises 72 ministers, which includes 30 cabinet ministers, 5 ministers of State with Independent Charge and 36 ministers of state.
Know the minister
Nadda was born in 1960 in Patna, Bihar. He studied LLB at Himachal Pradesh University (HPU) and was elected ABVP’s national secretary in 1989 and later in 1991 he was made the president of the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM). He was elected an MLA in the Himachal Pradesh legislative assembly for the first time in 1993.
He has been a cabinet minister in Himachal Pradesh. He also shouldered the responsibilities of BJP national general secretary and member secretary of the BJP Parliamentary Board. He held the position of Union health minister in the first Modi government (2014 – 2019). He served for three terms as a member of the Himachal Pradesh legislative assembly before being elected to the Rajya Sabha for the first time in 2012. He was appointed as a national working president of BJP in 2019 before being elected as a BJP national president in 2020.
Former chief minister and leader of opposition Jairam Thakur in a statement issued from Shimla congratulated Modi for taking oath as the Prime Minister for the third term and said it is a matter of pride for the entire country, including the BJP. He also thanked the countrymen for giving immense public support to the BJP and the NDA for the third time. Jairam said that Modi’s third term as Prime Minister will be historic. All the targets set by Modi for the third term will be easily achieved within the stipulated time. Jairam also reached Delhi and attended the swearing-in ceremony.
Chief minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu congratulated Modi on assuming the office of the Prime Minister. He expressed hope that Modi would come up to the expectations of the people of the country as well as the state.
The chief minister expressed optimism that Himachal Pradesh would get substantial financial support from the Union government for the development initiatives in the state during his stint as the Prime Minister.
