Jaswant gets FIPB from Jaitley’s commerce and industry ministry

Within hours of Arun Jaitley taking over as the new Commerce and Industry Minister, the important Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) ...

Within hours of Arun Jaitley taking over as the new Commerce and Industry Minister, the important Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) was taken away from him and given to Finance Minister Jaswant Singh.

‘‘FIPB will now be under Finance Minister,’’ an official spokeman said here.

The decision follows a 30 minute meeting Jaswant Singh, who also holds the portfolio of the Department of Company Affairs, had with Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee this evening. Singh, however, did not not comment anything about the meting.

Neither Jaitley nor industry secretary Govindrajan were available for their comments. Govindrajan had chaired a meeting of FIPB immediately after Jaitley took charge of the ministry. On why the Department of Company Affairs had not been shifted back to law and justice, Jaitley said: ‘‘there is a lot of synergy that DCA has with the finance ministry’’. ‘‘Even earlier as Law Minister, I used to interact a lot with the Finance Minister on DCA as there is an overlapping with Sebi,’’ Jaitley said.

'India expects Riyadh to keep mutual interests in mind': MEA on Saudi-Pakistan defence pact

‘India expects Riyadh to keep mutual interests in mind’: MEA on Saudi-Pak defence pact

India17 min ago

India on Friday said that it expects Saudi Arabia to keep in mind "mutual interests and sensitivities" in the wake of Riyadh sealing a strategic defence pact with Pakistan. The agreement states that "any aggression against either of the two countries shall be considered as an aggression against both".

View all shorts

Live Blog