Who is Nirmala Sitharaman

Nirmala Sitharaman

Who is Nirmala Sitharaman
Who is Nirmala Sitharaman
Nirmala Sitharaman holds two important portfolios — the finance ministry and the corporate affairs ministry — in the Narendra Modi-led Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government in its second term at the Centre. She is the first full-time woman finance minister of the country. Earlier, Indira Gandhi had held finance as an additional portfolio for a short duration when she was the prime minister of India. Sitharaman presented this government’s maiden Budget on July 5. Tax relief offered by Piyush Goyal to the salaried class in the Interim Budget was a key thing looked at in her Budget. She made no change to the taxation waiver offered by Goyal those earning up to Rs 5 lakh annually. She, however, increased the surcharge for those with an annual taxable income of over Rs 2 crore.  

Read all about Budget 2019, presented by Sitharaman on July 5
 
A Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) politician and a trusted lieutenant of PM Modi's, Sitharaman headed the Union defence ministry during the first stint of the Modi government. Initially, she had been made a Minister of State in 2014 and given the portfolio of commerce & industry with independent charge. 
 
A member of the Rajya Sabha, Sitharaman did not contest the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.
 
Before taking to active politics, Sitharaman worked in the corporate sector after getting a masters degree from the Jawaharlal Nehru University. Subsequently, she moved to London with her husband and joined the British Broadcasting Corporation. She returned to India in the 1990s and became an educationist. Later, she founded the Pranava school in Hyderabad. 
 
She was nominated to the National Commission for Women during the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) regime under Atal Bihari Vajpayee. Sitharaman joined the BJP in 2008 and was made a spokesperson for the party the next year. In 2014, she became a member of Parliament in the Rajya Sabha as a BJP candidate.
 
During her term as defence minister, Sitharaman had to defend the Narendra Modi government against allegations of corruption by the Opposition in the Rafale aircraft deal signed between India and France. Sitharaman's firefighting, in public and Parliament, were significant since the Opposition had been using alleged corruption in the Rafale deal as a poll plank in the run-up to Lok Sabha elections 2019. Sitharaman was also a member of the committee tasked with preparing the BJP's manifesto for the elections.

 

Latest Updates on Nirmala Sitharaman

Nothing pending: Sitharaman rejects Karnataka govt charges on fund dues

4 min read Last Updated : Nov 30 2023 | 11:26 PM IST
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Sitharaman demands concrete action on climate funding, not words at COP 28

3 min read Last Updated : Nov 28 2023 | 06:51 AM IST
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Investors need not be jittery; Modi coming back with majority: Sitharaman

4 min read Last Updated : Nov 27 2023 | 11:00 PM IST
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Sitharaman trying to mislead Kerala people on funds disbursement: CM

3 min read Last Updated : Nov 26 2023 | 6:13 PM IST
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FM Sitharaman dismisses Kerala govt's fund allocation 'negligence' charge

4 min read Last Updated : Nov 25 2023 | 6:33 PM IST
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DMK regime retrieved temple properties worth Rs 5,500 cr: Stalin flays FM

2 min read Last Updated : Nov 24 2023 | 7:19 PM IST
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Rein in enthusiasm to lend: FM Sitharaman to NBFCs, small finance banks

3 min read Last Updated : Nov 23 2023 | 11:14 PM IST
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Customer data shared with account aggregators totally safe: FM Sitharaman

2 min read Last Updated : Nov 23 2023 | 6:09 PM IST
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NBFCs should remain cautious on lending as suggested by RBI, says FM

3 min read Last Updated : Nov 23 2023 | 4:59 PM IST
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Sitharaman stresses on building awareness among people to curb cyber fraud

2 min read Last Updated : Nov 23 2023 | 1:53 PM IST
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FY24 to end with strong growth performance, macroeconomic stability: FinMin

3 min read Last Updated : Nov 21 2023 | 10:47 PM IST
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Only govt should do food certification, not NGOs: FM Nirmala Sitharaman

2 min read Last Updated : Nov 21 2023 | 10:45 PM IST
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Telangana elections: BJP's multiple rallies with Modi, Shah, Rajnath, Yogi

2 min read Last Updated : Nov 21 2023 | 12:19 PM IST
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15 Tamil Nadu fishermen reached Chennai after being released from Sri Lanka

2 min read Last Updated : Nov 21 2023 | 09:34 AM IST
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Women accorded top priority under PM Mudra Yojana scheme: FM Sitharaman

5 min read Last Updated : Nov 19 2023 | 7:10 PM IST
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Women accorded top priority under PM Mudra Yojana scheme, says Sitharaman

4 min read Last Updated : Nov 19 2023 | 2:20 PM IST
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K'taka CM writes to Shah, Sitharaman to expedite drought relief funds

2 min read Last Updated : Nov 15 2023 | 7:07 PM IST
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Israel war a challenge for West Asia corridor: FM Nirmala Sitharaman

4 min read Last Updated : Nov 15 2023 | 10:37 PM IST
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Priyanka silent on atrocities on women in Cong-ruled Rajasthan: Sitharaman

2 min read Last Updated : Nov 10 2023 | 5:51 PM IST
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Wants to bring petrol under GST: Sitharaman slams Cong on double standards

2 min read Last Updated : Nov 10 2023 | 5:37 PM IST
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