Amit Shah will probably need to move quickly to stimulate an economy beset by weak farm incomes, slow jobs growth and falling sales of key consumer goods including cars and motorbikes
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to name Amit Shah, the chief of his Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), as the country’s new finance minister after taking his oath of office for the second time on Thursday, according to several Indian media reports. As Modi’s right-hand man and long-time strategist, Shah would be in a powerful position to direct financial policy in Asia’s third-largest economy in his first role as a federal lawmaker.
Amit Shah masterminded the BJP’s landslide victory in the April-May general election, but there are questions about his lack of central government experience and financial background, especially at a time of growing signs of weakness in the economy.
Modi is expected to announce his ministers’ departments on Friday, after all of them were sworn in on Thursday evening at an open-air ceremony outside the colonial-era presidential palace with some 8,000 guests including Bollywood stars and leaders of neighbours Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. The 54-year-old Shah, among 57 new and old ministers who will join Modi in the next government, pledged to give his best to create a strong and prosperous India.
“This team is a blend of youthful energy and administrative experience,” Modi said on Twitter. “It has people who have excelled as parliamentarians and those who have had distinguished professional careers. Together, we will work for India’s progress.”
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