A look at profiles of newly inducted ministers

New Delhi, Oct 28: In a major cabinet reshuffle before 2014 general elections, 22 ministers were sworn in today. Let's have a look at the profiles of some of the newly inducted ministers: 1. K Rehman KhanK Rahman Khan, a veteranParliamentarian who had a nearly six-year stint as Deputy Chairman of Rajya Sabha, makes a comeback into the Union Council of Ministers with a promotion to Cabinet rank. The re-entry of 73-year-old leader from Karnataka in the government was anticipated when he relinquished the charge of Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman earlier this year after which he was re-elected to the House for a fourth term. A chartered accountant by profession, he became a Minister of State in UPA I.Khan became Deputy Chairman of Rajya Sabha in 2006 and his handling of the House was by and large appreciated by all sections.His induction comes close on the heels of resignation of External Affairs Minister S M Krishna, who is a Lok Sabha member from Karnataka.Khan was a member of the Karnataka Legislative Council and later became its chairman in 1993 before being elected to the Rajya Sabha in 1995.He had been a member of Joint Parliamentary Committee on functioning of Wakf Boards and the one on Securities Scam. Born to Khasim Khan, a school teacher and Khairunnisa at Krishnarajpet, Mandya District of Karnataka, Khan did his pre-schooling at a nearby Village. He later joined Banmaya's College at Mysore.Married to Ayesha, the couple have five children.2. Manish TewariThough a first time MP, AICC spokesperson Manish Tewari has a long association of nearly 31 years with Congress since joining its youth wing in 1981. The 47-year-old leader was seen as a strong defence line of the Congress in JPC on 2G to counter BJP onslaught. Tewari, who was the president of Indian Youth Congress from 1998 to 2000, lost the 2004 Lok Sabha polls but successfully contested the 2009 general elections from Ludhiana by defeating Shiromani Akali Dal's candidate Gurcharan Singh Galib by a margin of over one lakh votes. During his pre-university days, he joined youth wing of Congress and rose to become its All India Youth President before becoming the Secretary of AICC and was appointed as its Spokesperson in 2008.Tewari comes from an eminent Punjabi family. His father V N Tewari, a professor of Punjab University, was part of the freedom movement and was killed by terrorists in 1984, few months before Operation Blue Star.Tewari's grandfather Sardar Tirath Singh too was an advocate and Minister in the Congress Government in Punjab.3. ChiranjeeviHe cruised up touching the sky in the tinsel town like a powerful rocket, but when Chiranjeevi replaced the engine of cinema with rustic politics, it was not smooth sailing for him.In the end, like any other Indian blockbuster, hero Chiranjeevi emerged the winner by finding himself in the Union Council of Ministers, which was expanded today, after spending almost two full years in political hibernation. He as inducted as Minister of State with Independent charge. The superstar, who entertained millions of young men, women, children and old alike through his inimitable style whose mantra only he knows, left his lucrative career to test his fortunes in politics at the age of 53 in 2008. His journey in politics was not a bed of roses but was filled with thorns which the actor, who had not tasted failure at the box office for years together, could not swallow it like he did success.In less than year after launching his party, his outfit contested state elections only to win less than 20 seats with Chiranjeevi himself losing one assembly seat of the two he contested.Widely perceived as the only person who could recreate the magic of NTR, the legendary whose star power catapulted him to the Chief Minister's post in just nine months after his plunge in politics, Chiranjeevi was not bestowed with a magic wand.With his prediction going haywire, Chiranjeevi stood isolated in politics with no friends to guide him and was forced to walk on the fire that eventually took a cinematic turn—his infant party was dissolved in a split second and merged with Congress, which was the prime enemy when he took a plunge in politics.From February 2011 to October 2012, Chiranjeevi was almost in oblivion except when he ventured out for a couple of rare meetings with Sonia Gandhi.4. Kodikkunnil SureshA five-time Lok Sabha member, 50-year-old Kodikkunnil Suresh is a prominent Dalit face of the Congress in Kerala and has been a staunch loyalist of senior leader and Defence Minister A K Antony right from his campus days.Elected from Mavelikkara (SC) seat in 2009, Suresh suffered a temporary setback when his election was declared void by Kerala High Court in 2010, on the ground that his high school records showed him a convert to Christianity and due to that not qualified to contest from a constituency reserved for Scheduled Caste candidates.A year later, the Supreme Court quashed the high court order accepting his contention that he had reconverted to Hinduism and had been elected to the Lok Sabha four times from an SC seat.Born in a family of modest means in Kodikkunnil village in Thiruvananthapuram district, Suresh began his career as an activist of the Congress's student wing KSU when in high school. He later became state general secretary of the campus outfit and held senior positions in the Youth Congress.He had his successful electoral debut from Adoor Parliament seat in 1989 and retained the seat in 1991, 1996 and 1999. He was however defeated in 1998 and 2004.5. Adhir Ranjan ChowdhuryAdhir Ranjan Chowdhury, an influential Congress leader from West Bengal's Murshidabad district and known to be close to Pranab Mukherjee, is a three-time Lok Sabha MP.Having dropped out of school at age 15, he started as a District leader of Youth Congress in the 1970s when political atmosphere was very tense and violent in West Bengal. Chowdhury, who today took oath as Minister of State, entered legislative politics from Nabagram assembly constituency in 1996. He has won the Berhampore Lok Sabha seat consecutively since 1999.He took the initiative in the election campaigns of Pranab Mukherjee from Jangipur parliamentary constituency in Murshidabad district in 2004 and also in 2009 which won him the favour of the Congress high command. He was also responsible for the recent election of Pranab's son Abhijit Mukherjee from the Jangipur Lok Sabha seat.Before joining active politics, Adhir suffered imprisonment in various criminal cases during the previous Left Front regime in the state.The District Congress president, Adhir was widely considered the chief architect of party's victory in zila parishad elections as also in elections to various municipalities in Murshidabad district.6. Porika Balram NaikFrom a humble police constable to a first time MP from Telangana and now at the centrestage as a Union Minister of State, Porika Balram Naik has come a long way and is being rewarded for his discipline and loyalty to the Congress High Command.One of the few MPs who did not go against the views of the Congress on the contentious Telangana statehood demand, 48-year-old Naik always stood by the party and today he is the envy of many of his colleagues.He refused to join his colleagues from Telangana region when they decided to send their resignations to Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar in protest against the non-decision on the statehood demand.This isolated him from others fighting for a separate state, but his discipline and loyalty brought him at the centrestage of politics with his induction into the Union Council of Ministers.Born to a poor family in Mulugu mandal of Warangal district, the epicentre of Telangana agitation, Naik began his his career as a police constable in his native district. After serving the force for a few years, he joined the Telecom Department where he worked for a brief period only to quit and launch his own real estate business.Going on to build a real estate empire, Naik joined Congress on the eve of 2009 general elections and was elected to Lok Sabha from Mahbubabad (ST) constituency by defeating retired IPS officer D T Naik of erstwhile Praja Rajyam Party. A graduate, Balram Naik brands himself as a “social worker” and is a member of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Labour.Currently, he is also the all-India president of Banjara Sevak Samaj.7. Kotla Jaya Suryaprakash ReddyA seasoned politician, Kotla Jaya Suryaprakash Reddy has come a long way in the Congress in Andhra Pradesh after being elected to Lok Sabha for the first time in 1994.Son of Rayalaseema strongman late Kotla Vijayabaskara Reddy, Suryaprakash's family has always been loyal to the Gandhi-Nehru family.Vijayabaskara Reddy was a towering figure in Andhra Pradesh and had served as Chief Minister twice -- 1982 to 1983 and 1992 to 1994.Suryaprakash was elected to Lok Sabha from the family's stronghold of Kurnool for the first time in 1994 when his father was the Chief Minister.He lost subsequent elections but got elected to Lok Sabha again in 2004 and 2009. His wife Sujathamma served as an MLA between 2004 and 2009.A graduate in Political Science from Nizam College in Hyderabad, Suryaprakash served as district Congress president of Kurnool for nine years and earned reputation as a strong leader.8. Sarve SatyanarayanaA trade union leader, Sarve Satyanarayana, who was today swown-in as a Minister of State, has always been at the forefront of agitations and protests when it came to supporting the cause of workers and quit government service to take a plunge in politics. 58-year-old Satyanarayana, who is serving his second term as a Member of Parliament, was elected to Lok Sabha for the first time from Siddipet constituency in Medak district of Telangana region in 2004.Like Balram Naik, he is also being rewarded for his disciplined stand on the Telangana statehood issue. He never defied the party's stand and even refused to join his colleagues in submitting resignation from elected office. A law graduate, Sarve started his career as a public servant and worked in organisations like State Bank of India, HMT and SAIL. During the course of his employment in these organisations, Sarve established himself as a trade union leader.Subsequently, he quit government service to join politics and was elected to Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly in 1985. He was a member of Telugu Desam Party for a few years but later joined Congress.9. Tariq AnwarLady luck has smiled on senior NCP leader Tariq Anwar who made his maiden entry into government as a Union Minister of State after nearly four decades in active politics.61-year-old Anwar was a Congress leader till 1999, when he along with Sharad Pawar and P A Sangma parted ways with that party to establish Nationalist Congress Party. A second-term Rajya Sabha member, he held the crucial position of Political Secretary to the then Congress President Sitaram Kesri.Anwar hails from Bihar, but represents Maharashtra in the Rajya Sabha.Coming from an illustrious family which has been associated with the freedom struggle, Anwar began his career as a journalist in 1972 and took the political plunge soon after by joining Congress.He rose to become the President of the Bihar Youth Congress in 1976. He made steady progress in the party ranks to become the President of the All India Youth Congress in 1982.Anwar contested and won from the Katihar Lok Sabha constituency in 1980 and represented the seat for four terms. He was also the Chairman of the All India Seva Dal and Chairman of the AICC Minority Cell for a few years. He also held the post of the President of the Bihar unit of Congress. Anwar was elected as member of the Congress Working Committee in 1997 and was made a General Secretary of the party.He was re-appointed as AICC General Secretary in June 1998 by Congress chief Sonia Gandhi, a post he held till May 1999 when he parted ways with the party to set up NCP with Pawar and Sangma.Anwar has been made Minister of State for Agriculture and Food Processing under his political boss Pawar.