Cabinet Reshuffle: Smriti removed as I&B minister; Goyal gets charge of finance

Smriti Irani

Smriti Irani, whose tenure as the Information and Broadcasting (I&B) minister was mired in controversy, has been divested of the portfolio as Prime Minister Narendra Modi reshuffled his cabinet in which Rail Minister Piyush Goyal was given the additional charge of the finance ministry.

Irani's deputy in the I&B Ministry has been given the charge of the key portfolio. A Rashtrapati Bhavan communique said Rathore has been assigned the independent charge as Minister of State in the I&B ministry. This is the second time that Irani has been moved from a key ministry as she was earlier shifted from the HRD ministry to textile ministry. She remains the textile minister. The communique said during the indisposition of Arun Jaitley, the portfolio of finance and Ministry of Corporate Affairs, have been "temporarily" been assigned to Goyal.

(L-R) Piyush Goyal; Alphons Kannanthanam. Pics/AFP

S S Ahluwalia has been relieved of the charge of Minister of State in Drinking Water and Sanitation Ministry and assigned a new portfolio of Electronics and Information Technology. Alphons Kannanthanam has been relieved as Minister of State in the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology.