Modi 3.0: BJP chief Nadda returns to Modi Cabinet, gets health ministry

JP Nadda took over as the BJP president from Amit Shah, who joined the Modi Cabinet as the Home Minister in May 2019.

Union minister JP Nadda has been appointed as the health minister in the Modi 3.0 Cabinet, nearly five years after he quit the ministry after becoming the BJP chief.

Nadda (63) was the sole representative from Himachal Pradesh in the BJP-led government. Born in Bodh village in Himachal's Bilaspur district, Nadda graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree from Patna University and an LLB from the Faculty of Law of Himachal Pradesh University, Shimla.

Nadda's political journey began with the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), the students' wing of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). He became president of the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM), the BJP's youth wing, in 1991.

Over the years, he held various key positions in the BJP and even headed its election campaign in states such as Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Kerala, Maharashtra and Punjab. He also served as a minister in BJP's governments in his home state of Himachal Pradesh. Nadda is said to have been inspired by legendary politicians such as Atal Bihari Vajpayee, LK Advani, and Bhairon Singh Shekhawat.

After the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, Nadda was made the BJP's working president. He was later elevated to the position of BJP president in January 2020 after Shah, the then BJP chief, was appointed as Union home minister.Nadda’s term as the party chief had been extended by six months in January in order for him to oversee the general elections.

The BJP, which managed to win only 240 seats in the Lok Sabha elections, ahd to rely on its NDA allies, mainly N Chandrababu Naidu's TDP and Nitish Kumar's Janata Dal United, for crossing the majority mark.