Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Sunday termed the appointment of Nirmala Sitharaman as Defence Minister as a significant landmark in the cabinet reshuffle.
"A very significant landmark in this reshuffle is that we now have Nirmala Sitharaman as the new Defence Minister. It is a case where a minister performs well and earns a higher responsibility for herself (Nirmala Sitharaman)," Jaitley told the media here.
Jaitley dubbed Sitharaman an 'extremely competent successor' and said she will carry the road forward.
Earlier in the day, Sitharaman was appointed as the Defence Minister as the second woman to do so after late Indira Gandhi, and the first one to take independent charge.
Sitharaman will take over the post from Jaitley on September 6, who will retain his position as the Finance Minister.
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The 58-year-old has previously served as a Minister of State for Finance and Corporate Affairs.
An alumnus of the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), Sitharaman joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in 2006 as its national spokesperson, and Prime Minister Narendra Modi's ministry in 2014.
Sitharaman represents Karnataka in the Rajya Sabha.
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