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Who Is India’s Finance Minister, Asks Subramanian Swamy

How can we have an Interim Finance Minister and a Finance Minister at the same time, asks BJP’s Rajya Sabha MP.



Subramanian Swamy, Bharatiya Janata Party leader and member of the Rajya Sabha. (Photographer: Prashanth Vishwanathan/Bloomberg)
Subramanian Swamy, Bharatiya Janata Party leader and member of the Rajya Sabha. (Photographer: Prashanth Vishwanathan/Bloomberg)

Subramanian Swamy, Rajya Sabha member of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party, questioned the status of Piyush Goyal as an ‘interim Union Finance Minister’, asserting that there is no such provision.

“Either you are the Finance Minister or you are not the Finance Minister,” Swamy said in an interview with BloombergQuint's Sanjay Pugalia.

In one article in the Hindu Business Line, there’s a statement by Piyush Goyal as ‘Interim Finance Minister’. There is no such thing... In another article, Jaitley has made a comment... That says these comments are by ‘the Finance Minister’. How can we have an Interim Finance Minister and a Finance Minister at the same time?
Subramanian Swamy, Rajya Sabha MP, BJP

Goyal was handed the charge of the Finance Ministry in the absence of Arun Jaitley, who is recuperating from a surgery.

Swamy first raised the issue in a tweet on June 18, in response to comments made by Manish Tewari of the Congress.

“The website of the Prime Minister’s office says Piyush Goyal is the Finance Minister, and Jaitley is Minister Without Portfolio. However, the Finance Ministry’s website says Jaitley is the Finance Minister,” said Swamy.

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According to Swamy, only someone who has professionally studied economics, and understands politics as well, should be Finance Minister.

Show me one person in the Cabinet who understands economics. There isn’t a single one.
Subramanian Swamy, Rajya Sabha MP, BJP

Watch the full interview here: