External Affairs Minister joins BJP

New Delhi: External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar formally joined the BJP on Monday, nearly a month after being inducted into the Cabinet in a surprise move by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The 64-year-old former Foreign Secretary was welcomed into the party by BJP Working President J.P. Nadda at the party office here. Party’ s National General Secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya, Minister of State for External Affairs V. Muraleedharan and BJP MP Bhupender Yadav were also present.
Jaishankar, who played a key role in shaping the foreign policy of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s first term, was inducted into the Cabinet and given the important portfolio of External Affairs on May 30, when the new Council of Ministers was sworn in.
As of now, he is not a member of either House of Parliament.
The 1977-batch officer served in various capacities in the Ministry of External Affairs and as Indian envoy in important countries such as the US and China at crucial times.
Jaishankar, who was honoured with India’s fourth highest civilian award Padma Shri in January this year, also played a key role in improving the defence cooperation between India and the US in the shape of a new framework. (IANS)