Union minister Arjun Ram Meghwal on Thursday replaced Kiren Rijiju to be the new law minister of India. The development comes in the backdrop of the Collegium tussle. Rijiju has been assigned the Ministry of Earth Sciences, according to a statement issued by the Rashtrapati Bhavan.
During Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s first term in office, Meghwal served as the Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs, Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation. In the second PM Modi cabinet, he holds the portfolio of Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs and Culture as well as Minister of State in the ministry of heavy industries and public enterprises.
Born on December 20, 1953, the politician from Bikaner in Rajasthan holds a law degree from the Dungar College in Bikaner. He completed his law degree in 1977.
A former IAS officer, who was re-elected from the Bikaner Parliamentary seat as an MP for the third time, the politician is a prominent scheduled Caste community leader.
Political career of Arjun Ram Meghwal
After resigning from civil services, he entered politics in 2009, and was elected as a BJP MP from Bikaner in that year, and in the 2014 elections, he was re-elected from the seat. During his second term as an MP, he was the chief whip of the BJP in the Lok Sabha.
Arjun Ram Meghwal’s Ministry terms:
From 2016-17, he served as Union Minister of State for Finance and Corporate Affairs.
From 2017-19, he served as the Union Minister of State for Water Resources, River Development & Ganga Rejuvenation and Parliamentary Affairs.
From 2019-2023, he has been the Union Minister of State for Heavy Industries & Public Enterprises and Parliamentary Affairs.
Currently, Meghwal has been assigned an independent charge as Minister of State in the Ministry of Law and Justice in addition to his existing portfolios, in place of Rijiju, according to the statement issued by Rashtrapati Bhavan. President Droupadi Murmu, as advised by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, reallocated the portfolios among ministers in the Union Council of Ministers.