POLITICAL CAREER OF KIREN RIJIJU (MINISTER OF LAW AND JUSTICE)

This article is written by Karpagam from VIT Chennai.

Introduction:

Kiren Rijiju was born on November 19, 1971. Rijiju graduated from Hansraj College, University of Delhi and holds a law degree from the Campus Law Center, Faculty of Law, University of Delhi. From time to time, he writes articles on security and social and economic.  A major reshuffle of the Union Cabinet on Wednesday carries with it the technical and administrative mark of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Kiren Rijiju, who swore as Cabinet Minister in this major change, has been appointed Minister of Law and Justice of the Union in Modi 2.0 government. He replaces Ravi Shankar Prasad, who resigned from the union Government on Wednesday. A total number of 43 leaders took  oath of office to expand the Cabinet held at Darbar Hall in Rashtrapati Bhavan . Out of the 43, 15 were sworn in as Cabinet Ministers while 28 leaders were promoted as Minister of State (MoS). In the new Cabinet, four Cabinet Ministers, 18 state Ministers, 39 MLA’s and 23 MP’s have been elected three or more times.

Political career:

Rijiju is considered as the face of the Bharatiya Janata Party in North East India. He served as a Khadi Member and Commission for the Home Industry from 2000 to 2005 at a very young age of 29 years.

In the 2004 general election, he was elected as the 14th member of Lok Sabha, representing the Arunachal West constituency in the Indian Parliament, the fourth largest constituency in India. Rijiju entered Lok Sabha for the second time in 2014 from the Arunachal (West) region of Arunachal Pradesh in India.

During 2004-09, Rijiju was placed among the main opposition MPs who were reviewed by their peers on the treasury bench based on the top bench in negotiations and embellishments and was placed among experts such as L. Advani. He was re-elected as the leading Member of Parliament for many  National news organizations and magazines.

In the 2009 general election, Rijiju was defeated by a narrow margin of 1314 votes by a candidate for Congress in the midst of a highly controversial situation that sparked widespread violence over allegations of a ballot by the Congress Party. In the 2014 general election, Rijiju was re-elected as the 16th Member of Parliament for Lok Sabha, representing the Arunachal West constituency.

Rijiju, at the time of the Rohingya refugee crisis in 2017, said “Rohingyas are illegal immigrants and should be deported”. He also pointed out that “India has already taken the highest number of refugees in the world so no one should give India lessons on how to deal with refugees”.

In May 2019, Rijiju became the Minister of State (Independent) for Youth and Sport Affairs and the Minister of State for Home Affairs. In July 2021, he became the Minister of Justice and Justice in the Department of Second Modi during the Cabinet reshuffle.

Kiran Rijiju’s views on the new position:

He said he was aware of the responsibility entrusted to him, and that he was prepared to face the challenges ahead. “Now is not the time to talk about ideas , now is the time to act,” he told NDTV. When the question raised if he could get help from his predecessor – Ravi Shankar Prasad – he said that he would be informed by senior officials of the Legal Department on pending issues, and also said “It’s always about teamwork; it’s about participation. Nothing happens alone.”

“Entering this room (for the first time) is a big challenge and my job is to do my role as Minister of law and Justice. I have a law degree  but I don’t have much experience working but everything can be managed with leadership and support. We will try to be transparent, we don’t want to make too many comments now.” Mr Rijiju told reporters. He also thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for “showing confidence in his strengths”.

Conclusion:

The Legal Department is responsible for protecting the government in various courts through its legal authorities and for assisting ministers to make debt and key documents. It also contributes to the transfer, submission and promotion of the Supreme Court and the judges of the high court. The filling of vacancies in the Supreme Court and the 25 High Courts and the additional appointment of judicial officers in the lower courts are  major challenges before the new Minister of Justice. Improving justice infrastructure and technological advancement, especially during the COVID-19 era when the courts are operating almost exclusively; the creation of an Indian judicial service that delays the process of police recruitment in the lower courts and India’s speculation as a major platform for resolving some of the key challenges before it.

References

1.  [Live law news network], [Kiren Rijiju Is The New Union Minister For Law And Justice], [Live Law], [1^st page ], [2021]

1. [The Hindu], [A huge challenge for me: new Law Minister Kiren Rijiju ], [The Hindu], [1^st page], [2021]
2. [Sagun suryan], [Arunachal Pradesh MP, Kiren Rijiju takes charge as Union Law Minister ], [Bar and bench], [1^st page], [2021]
3. [Press Trust of India], [ Kiren Rijiju takes charge as new minister of law and justice ], [Eastmojo], [1^st page], [2021]