S Jaishankar - New Foreign Secretary

January 29, 2015 15:31
S Jaishankar - New Foreign Secretary

S Jaishankar, who was till yesterday India's ambassador to the US, took charge this morning as the new foreign secretary. The new foreign secretary said, "I am really honoured to have been given this big responsibility. My priorities are the same as the government's priorities." The government has announced Dr Jaishankar's appointment after a meeting of the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet, chaired by the PM, last evening.

Dr Jaishankar, 60, is the son of K Subrahmanyam, who was one of India's leading strategic analysts. He was a key member of the team that negotiated the nuclear deal with the US in 2008. A 1977 batch officer of the Indian Foreign Service, Dr Jaishankar was reportedly Dr Singh's first pick to replace Ranjan Mathai as Foreign Secretary in 2013.

Sujatha Singh's sudden removal is being compared to the controversial dismissal on national television of A.P. Venkateswaran as foreign secretary by then Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi in 1987.

Manish Tewari of Congress said, "If the PM was unhappy with the foreign secretary, why didn't he ask her to go nine months ago. The timing is questionable. Why wait for the presidential visit to end? Did something happen during the visit? The PM needs to explain."

"The government has the right to appoint any officer. Many of the previous governments have done this. I don't know why the Congress is making this a political issue. The Modi government wants to make India strong, " said the ruling BJP's Nalin Kohli.

By Premji

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