New Delhi: In a surprise move on Thursday, Union Minister Kiren Rijiju was divested of the Law and Justice portfolio, which was handed over to Arjun Ram Meghwal.Rijiju has been given the earth sciences ministry. Rijiju had been a vocal critic of the way Supreme Court and high court judges are appointed by a collegium, calling it “unconstitutional”. He had also stirred controversy by accusing some retired judges of being anti-India. The political circles are buzzing with speculation about the reason behind this move. Some see Meghwal’s elevation as a big signal for Rajasthan ahead of the upcoming Assembly polls.
10 things to know about Arjun Ram Meghwal:
1. Arjun Singh Meghwal is a bureaucrat-turned-politician. He is a three-term Lok Sabha member from Bikaner.
2. Meghwal, who is a minister of state, has been given the additional responsibility of being the minister of state with independent charge in the law and justice ministry. He also holds the portfolios of parliamentary affairs and culture as a minister of state.
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3. With his appointment, the party`s top leadership has tried to bring in a new face who is non-controversial, and well-educated. He is said to be a favourite of the Modi-Shah team.
4. A three-term Lok Sabha member from Bikaner, Meghwal is only the third person to hold the Law and Justice portfolio as a Minister of State with Independent Charge.
5. The BJP`s top leadership has tried to tap into the SC segment via this move. After decades, any leader from the SC category has been given the law minister portfolio.
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6. He is the man who knows how to hold his anger and has never ever given any controversial statement to date.
7. Meanwhile, as the Assembly elections of Rajasthan are near, BJP wants to give a big message by promoting Arjun Ram Meghwal. The BJP has suffered losses on the reserved Assembly seats in Karnataka.
8. In such a situation, the BJP is trying to strengthen its hold on the safe seats in Rajasthan. Recently, Arjun Ram Meghwal had taken full responsibility for PM Modi`s programme in the state.
9. In such a situation, one more thing is being said this promotion of Meghwal is indicating that he can be fielded in the Assembly elections in Rajasthan.
10. Meghwal is a third-time MP in this tenure. The first time he won was in 2009 by a 19,575 margin. After that, his margin of victory has been increasing. In 2014, the Bharatiya Janata Party fielded Arjun Ram Meghwal from the Bikaner seat, where he won the election with more than three lakh votes. For the third consecutive time, Ram Meghwal won the election from Bikaner Lok Sabha seat by 2,640,00 votes.
