Senior Bharatiya Janata party (BJP) leader Rajnath Singh on Saturday formally took charge of Defence Ministry, a day after the portfolios were allocated to him in the newly elected Narendra Modi government.
Before assuming the charge, he visited National War Memorial at India Gate here and paid tributes to martyred soldiers who laid down their lives in protecting the sovereignty of the country.
He was accompanied by Indian Army chief Gen Bipin Rawat, Indian Air Force chief ACM BS Dhanoa and Indian Navy chief Admiral Karambir Singh.
"Paid tributes to the martyred soldiers who laid down their lives in the line of duty, at the National War Memorial today. These fallen heroes represent the character of India who has a long history of courage, sacrifice and patriotism. I salute them for keeping India safe," Mr Singh said in a tweet.
The 58-member Union Council of Ministers includes those holding the 25 Cabinet ranks, nine Ministers of State (Independent charge) and 24 Ministers of state. BJP President Amit Shah has made his debut at the Centre with the Home Ministry after replacing Mr Singh, the latter has replaced Nirmala Sitharaman as the new Defence Minister.
Mr Singh was a former Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, first made his entry into the Union Cabinet in 1999 when he took charge as the Minister for Surface Transport during Atal Bihari Vajpayee government.
In 2003, he took over as the Minister of Agriculture, and subsequently, Food Processing.
He was appointed as the BJP national President on December 31, 2005 — a post he held till December 19, 2009.
In May 2009, Mr Singh was elected as a Member of Parliament from Ghaziabad in Uttar Pradesh. In May 2014, he was elected as an MP from Lucknow in Uttar Pradesh.
Mr Singh became the Minister for Home Affairs in 2014. He was re-elected from the same seat in 2019.
The former Uttar Pradesh chief minister has largely maintained a clean image throughout his political career.
