Ex-IAS Officer, 3-Time MP From Bikaner: All About Arjun Ram Meghwal Who Replaced Kiren Rijiju As Law Minister

A three-time MP from Bikaner and a former IAS officer, Arjun Ram Meghwal replaced Kiren Rijiju as the Law Minister. Here's all about him.

A three-time MP from Bikaner and a former IAS officer, Arjun Ram Meghwal replaced Kiren Rijiju as the Law Minister.

Source : PTI

Arjun Ram Meghwal replaced Kiren Rijiju as the Law Minister on Thursday as the latter was assigned the charge of the Ministry Of Earth Sciences. This comes as a major development and in the wake of Rijiju's public spat with the Supreme Court over judicial appointments. Rijiju has said the decision was taken in view of the upcoming elections. 

Meghwal is a former bureaucrat and has been in active politics for almost 14 years. Here's all you need to know about him.

Union Minister And Three-Time MP From Bikaner

Arjun Ram Meghwal is a three-time MP from Bikaner and in 2019, he defeated Madan Gopal Meghwal of the Congress by a margin of 2.64 lakh votes. Meghwal is currently the Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs and the Minister of State for Culture. 

Former IAS Officer

He was a former IAS Officer and entered politics after taking voluntary retirement from service.

Given Best Parliamentarian Award

A veteran politician with an experience of 14 years, he was awarded the Best Parliamentarian Award in 2013. He was also the Chief Whip of the BJP in the Lok Sabha.

Launched 'Bhabhi Ji' Papad

He also launched 'Bhabhi Ji' crisps (papad) claiming that the food item would help drive away coronavirus. A video of the launch went viral. He said, "Under the Atmanirbhar India campaign, a papad manufacturer has come up with this product that will help in the formation of antibodies to fight the coronavirus. We congratulate this firm for coming up with this initiative under the Atmanirbhar India campaign."

Off late, Rijiju had been vocal about his opinion on the tussle between the executive and the judiciary over the procedure of appointment of the judges. He also criticised the collegium system to appoint judges on multiple occasions.

Earlier this year, Rijiju said judges were still subject to public scrutiny despite not having to participate in elections. "People are watching you... the judgments you give, how you work... In this age of social media, you can't hide anything," he said.

Democracy will not succeed if we weaken the independence of the judiciary or reduce its authority, respect and dignity," he said. 

"There have been many changes since 1947, so it would be wrong to think that the existing system will carry on and it would never be questioned. It is the changing situation which dictates the need and this is why the Constitution had to be amended more than a hundred times," he added.

Rijiju sought to support the views of a retired high court judge who claimed that the Supreme Court "hijacked" the Constitution by deciding to appoint judges itself.