Arun Jaitley is one of the closest to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Many claim he has eyes and ears of Modi. Jaitley defended Modi vigorously when future appeared uncertain for the then Gujarat Chief Minister following the 2002 riots and played a crucial rule in his rise to the top when voices of discontent, led by the likes lK Advani, grew louder.
Modi’s strong faith in Jaitley, a noted lawyer, is evident from the fact that despite his loss in the lok Sabha elections from Amritsar, he was always considered to be included in the Cabinet.
Jaitley, the leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, is more of a strategist than a grassroots politician, Jaitley was a key helmsman in the party’s 2014 campaign, now being recognised for its brilliance by even opponents, and was its key voice as the Modi juggernaut rolled on. In the first BJP Government under Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Jaitley was appointed Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting (Independent Charge) and later headed Disinvestment Ministry (Independent Charge), a new Ministry created for to give effect to the policy of disinvestments. He was the first Minister of Shipping following the bifurcation of the Ministry of Surface Transport and later headed law & Justice where he gave shape to the policy of judicial reforms.