New Delhi: Nirmala Sitharaman who is set to become India's first full-time woman defence minister, started her political journey as a spokesperson for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday elevated her to a Cabinet rank for her exceptional work in a major Cabinet reshuffle.


COMMERCIAL BREAK
SCROLL TO CONTINUE READING

The 58-year-old, who hails from Tamil Nadu's Madurai city, was able to impress the prime minister and BJP chief Amit Shah with her skilled handling of the commerce ministry.


Sitharaman holds an M.Phil in Economics from Delhi's Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU).


As a professional, she served at various UK-based organisations like the Agricultural Engineers Association, PricewaterhouseCoopers and BBC World Service.


After returning home, she worked as a deputy director of the Centre for Public Policy Studies at Hyderabad. She was also a member of the National Commission for Women from 2003-2005.


She stepped into politics in 2008 when she joined the BJP as a member of the National Executive. She was made the party's national spokesperson in 2010.


Straightforward approach and clear command describe her the best.


After BJP came to power in 2014, she was made the MoS Finance and Corporate Affairs and later made MoS (Independent Charge) Ministry of Commerce and Industry.


(With agency inputs)