Telugu Desam Party (TDP) MP from Andhra Pradesh's Srikakalum, Kinjarapu Ram Mohan Naidu, is the youngest-ever Minister in Modi Cabinet 3.0. Meanwhile, Hindustani Awam Morcha (Secular) founder Jitan Ram Manjhi is the oldest minister.
Who is Ram Mohan Naidu?
Ram Mohan (36) joined politics after his father and TDP leader K Yerran Naidu’s death in a road accident in 2012. Before this, Ram Mohan was working in Singapore after completing his master’s degree in business administration from Long Island University. He left his job and joined politics after his father's death in a road accident in 2012.
Ram Mohan, who is the national general secretary of the TDP, won the 2024 Lok Sabha polls from Srikakulam with a margin of over 3.27 lakh votes. He won the 2014 Lok Sabha elections from Srikakulam at the age of 26 and became the second-youngest MP to be elected that year. His father, Yerran Naidu, was reportedly the youngest minister in 1996 at the age of 39. “After a long time, TDP will have a Union Minister. We are very happy. We have the undivided attention of the Central government,” he told ANI.
Who is Jitan Ram Manjhi?
Majhi (80) has been a formidable force in Bihar's political scene. He was Bihar's chief minister between 2014-2015. The Dalit leader was the first chief minister from the state's Musahar community. An MLA since 1980, he was elected the Lok Sabha MP from Bihar's Gaya.
Manjhi entered politics in 1980 as a Congress candidate. However, over the years, he has been part of many parties including Nitish Kumar's Janata Dal (United) and Lalu Prasad Yadav’s Rashtriya Janata Dal. He had also served as the minister for scheduled castes and scheduled tribes welfare in Nitish Kumar's Cabinet.
The 2015 Assembly elections dealt Manjhi a harsh blow. His party secured only one seat, stripping him of any significant leverage with the BJP. In a surprising twist, Manjhi then joined the Mahagathbandhan. He won the Gaya seat in the 2024 general elections.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, along with his 71 ministers, took oath on Sunday for the new coalition government. The BJP, whose candidates won in 240 seats, fell short of the 272 majority mark and needed the support of allies in the party-led NDA for government formation.
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