Jaitley hints at cabinet expansion, defence post to be changed soon

New Delhi: Arun Jaitley, who has got important portfolios of finance, defence and corporate affairs in Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government, on Tuesday said there will be cabinet expansion soon. [caption id=“attachment_1544939” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Arun Jaitley implied there will be a cabinet expansion soon. AFP[/caption] Talking to reporters after taking charge as finance minister at North Block here, Jaitley said he holds the defence portfolio only as an additional charge and it would go to a new person once there is a cabinet expansion. “For a transition phase, I will be looking after the ministry of defence also, but that’s only an additional charge till when there is an expansion in the cabinet,” Jaitley said. In the newly sworn-in National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government, Jaitley has turned out to be the most important person after Prime Minister Narendra Modi. In the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS), the apex decision-making body of the cabinet, Jaitley holds two portfolios - finance and defence. Other two ministers in the CCS, besides the Prime Minister who chairs it, are Rajnath Singh as home minister and Sushma Swaraj as external affairs minister. PTI