Piyush Goyal gets Consumer Affairs ministry after Paswan's death
Union Minister Piyush Goyal, who holds the Railways portfolio, was on Friday given additional charge of the Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution ministry, a portfolio earlier held by Lok Janshakti Party's Ram Vilas Paswan who died on Thursday.
Union Minister Piyush Goyal, who holds the Railways portfolio, was on Friday (October 9) given additional charge of the Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution ministry, a portfolio earlier held by Lok Janshakti Party’s Ram Vilas Paswan who died on Thursday.
According to a Rashtrapati Bhavan communique on Friday, President Ram Nath Kovind, on the advice of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, directed that Goyal be assigned the ministry in addition to his existing portfolios.
Goyal is also the Minister of Commerce and Industry in the Modi cabinet.
Related news: India mourns Bihar’s Dalit icon Paswan; national flag flies at half-mast
Paswan, one of India’s most prominent Dalit leaders and eight-time Lok Sabha MP, was 74 years old. He was part of several BJP-led NDA and Congress-led UPA governments.
He will be cremated in Bihar capital Patna on Saturday. Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad will represent the Centre and the Union council of ministers at the funeral.
The veteran leader died just a few weeks ahead of the crucial assembly elections in Bihar. His LJP, now headed by his son Chirag Paswan, is going solo in the polls.