Jaishankar takes charge as External Affairs Minister, Vaishnaw as I&B Minister

Diplomat-turned-politician S Jaishankar on Tuesday (June 11) assumed charge as external affairs minister for the second consecutive term.

Jaishankar, 69, was among the senior BJP leaders, including Rajnath Singh, Amit Shah, Nitin Gadkari, and Nirmala Sitharaman, who retained the ministries that they handled in the previous government.

"Assumed charge as the Minister of External Affairs. Thank PM @narendramodi for assigning me this responsibility," he said on X.

As the external affairs minister since 2019, Jaishankar displayed with confidence his ability to clearly articulate India's positions on a range of complex issues at the global stage.

From blunting western criticism of New Delhi's procurement of crude oil from Moscow in the wake of the war in Ukraine to crafting a firm policy approach to deal with an assertive China, Jaishankar emerged as one of the leading ministers with an impressive record of performance in Prime Minister Modi's previous government.

He has also been credited with managing to bring matters of foreign policy to domestic discourse, especially during India's presidency of the G20.

He is currently a member of the Rajya Sabha from Gujarat.

Jaishankar served as India's foreign secretary from (2015-18), Ambassador to the United States (2013-15), China (2009-2013), and Czech Republic (2000-2004). He was also India's high commissioner to Singapore (2007-2009).

Jaishankar has also served in other diplomatic assignments in embassies in Moscow, Colombo, Budapest, and Tokyo, as well as in the Ministry of External Affairs and the President's Secretariat.

Ashwini Vaishnaw takes charge as I&B Minister

Ashwini Vaishnaw on Tuesday (June 11) assumed charge as Union Minister for Information and Broadcasting, the 35th leader to hold the portfolio since Independence.

He succeeds Anurag Singh Thakur, who held the post for nearly three years in the previous BJP-led government.

Vaishnaw, who also holds key portfolios such as Railways and Electronics and Information Technology, assumed charge as Information and Broadcasting Minister in the presence of senior officials, including I&B Secretary Sanjay Jaju.

Union Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting L Murugan was also present on the occasion.

Known to be a tough taskmaster, the 53-year-old bureaucrat-turned-politician was inducted as a minister for the first time in July 2021 and has earned the respect of his colleagues.

A Rajya Sabha member from Odisha, he was appointed as deputy secretary in the office of former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee in 2002 when the BJP had an alliance with the BJD.

Vaishnaw is an alumnus of IIT Kanpur.

(With inputs from agencies)