Home
Name: Rajnath Singh
Association with the RSS began when he was just 13. Was RSS General Secretary from Mirzapur in 1972. Became an MLA in 1974. Elevated to the post of BJP’s Youth Wing in 1988. Staunch supporter of Hindi.
Past posts: Was the Union Minister for Surface Transport and Minister for Agriculture & Food Processing in the Vajpayee Government.
Key challenges: Tightening internal security to check terror outfits, maintaining communal harmony.
External Affairs
Name: Sushma Swaraj
Age: 62
Specialisation : Lawyer
Has been elected seven times as a Member of Parliament and three times as an MLA. Began her political career as a leader of the BJP’s student wing, ABVP. Became the first woman Chief Minister of Delhi in 1998.
Past posts: Cabinet Minister for I&B and Telecom in second Vajpayee Government, between March and October 1998. Minister of Health, Family Welfare and Parliamentary Affairs in the NDA Government.
Key challenges: Fostering ties with neighbours and Western powers.
Finance & Defence
Name : Arun Jaitley
Age : 61
Specialisation: Lawyer
Started political career as a leader of the ABVP, the BJP’s student wing. Jaitley participated in Jayaprakash Narayan’s movement against corruption in the 1970s before joining the Jan Sangh. Lost to Congress’s Amrinder Singh in the recent Lok Sabha elections, in Amritsar.
Past posts: Union Minister for Commerce & Industry and Law & Justice in the NDA government (1998-2004).
Key challenges : Boosting economic growth, containing fiscal deficit, fostering deals, addressing corruption.
Commerce
Name: Nirmala Sitharaman
Age: 54
Specialisation : Economics and International Studies
A former member of the National Commission for Women. Joined the BJP and invited to be part of its National Executive Council. Her PhD thesis was on the India-Europe textile trade.
Past posts: National spokesperson of BJP since 2010.
Key challenges : Giving a fillip to exports to check the trade deficit. Stabilising the Foreign Direct Investment policy, particularly in multi-brand retail. Working out favourable Free Trade Agreements for India.
Agriculture
Name: Venkaiah Naidu
Age: 63
Specialisation: Lawyer
Started out as an ABVP leader. Elected to the Andhra Pradesh Assembly twice. Was elected Rajya Sabha member from Karnataka in 1998 and has since been re-elected twice from that State.
Past posts : Cabinet Minister for Rural development in 1999. Became National President of BJP in 2002.
Key challenges : Phasing out fertiliser subsidy. Convincing farmers that there is no room for sharp increases in minimum support prices. Setting a policy on genetically modified crops. Dealing with a possible drought.