Nirmala Sitharaman rewarded with Cabinet rank

New Delhi: BJP leader Nirmala Sitharaman, who was minister of state (independent charge) for commerce, was rewarded by her elevation to the Cabinet and to the crucial post of defence minister, making her the second woman Indian defence minister ever after former PM Indira Gandhi, who had held the defence portfolio for some time when she was Prime Minister.

Ms Sitharaman will also be the second woman minister in the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) after external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj and will also be India’s first full-time woman defence minister. Other ministers rewarded by elevation to Cabinet rank are Dharmendra Pradhan, Piyush Goyal and Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, who have also been rewarded for their good performance in addition to Ms Sitharaman. Piyush Goyal was made the new railway minister, after a spate of train accidents derailed Suresh Prabhu’s run. Mr Prabhu, however, retained his Cabinet rank in the reshuffle and will take over as the new commerce and industry minister. Minister of state for sports (independent charge) Vijay Goel was cut to size, with Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore getting his portfolio. Mr Goel will now be MoS parliamentary affairs and this is being seen as a demotion since his earlier portfolio was with independent charge.

Ms Sitharaman’s elevation is also being seen as a powerful push by the Modi government for women’s empowerment. Ms Sitharaman, 58, is a Rajya Sabha member and is now one of the prominent southern faces of the party. “Somebody who has come from a small town, grown into the party with all the support of the leadership, and if given such responsibility, it just makes you feel sometimes that cosmic grace is there. Otherwise it is impossible,” Ms Sitharaman was quoted as telling reporters in New Delhi after taking oath.

“I am just overwhelmed and humbled. I can serve the country with something which is constantly on the top of my mind,” she further said. Stressing that it was a big responsibility, Ms Sitharaman said she was “very grateful” for the confidence the Prime Minister has on her. Asked whether dealing with Pakistan in view of the terrorism issue will be her priority, she said “I have not even taken charge. I don’t think it is appropriate to comment on it now...Give me some time.” She added, “Every criticism is a message and we have to learn from it. I am not averse to criticism and also not frightened of it (criticism), but certainly take messages from them ... Criticism per se do not reflect on performance, it only adds to your performance if you are ready to take on-board the corrections that may be workable.”

To a query whether her elevation showed Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s commitment towards women empowerment, she said the Prime Minister has always been in favour. “I know his working style since the time he was in Gujarat... He always believe in giving women their due share. His belief is that women can also perform,” she said.

After the Modi government assumed office in May, 2014, senior BJP leader Arun Jaitley was given portfolios of both finance and defence but the defence portfolio was later given to BJP leader Manohar Parrikar in order to lighten the burden on Mr Jaitley. Following the Assembly elections in a few states earlier this year, then defence minister Mr Parrikar became Goa chief minister following which the additional charge of defence fell on the shoulders of Mr Jaitley.

Ms Sitharaman’s tasks as defence minister will be many, coming so soon after the end of the military stand-off with China at Doklam. She will have to ensure that the Indian Armed Forces are fully prepared in terms of military equipment and weaponry to defend the country at all times. Bureaucratic bottlenecks in defence acquisitions will also need to be removed by her.

The promotion of Mr Naqvi, M. Pradhan, and Mr Goyal, who were all Ministers of State with independent charge and are now cabinet ministers is also significant.

As minister of state for power, Mr Piyush Goyal had initiated a number of reform initiatives to improve health of power distribution companies in states. With his promotion, Mr Naqvi, who is holding charge of minority and parliamentary affairs, will be the lone Muslim face in the Cabinet.

Mr Pradhan as the Petroleum Minister is also credited with successfully implementing government’s policy in the crucial sector including the initiative to forego subsidised cooking gas voluntarily.