New Delhi:
Amid speculation over who will get what in the new government, the first Cabinet berth has just been confirmed. NDTV has learnt that SM Krishna will be taking charge as the External Affairs Minister in Manmohan Singh's new Cabinet.
The Karnataka Congress leader and former CM of the state, S M Krishna, was sworn-in on Friday who was called by Congress president Sonia Gandhi that morning.
With focus on stability, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh largely relied on experience and ability in the 19 Cabinet ministers who were sworn-in on Friday by bringing in former Karnataka Chief Minister S M Krishna and retaining trouble-shooter Pranab Mukherjee.
A suave and articulate leader, S M Krishna brings with him vast experience in the state and at the Centre and is credited with efforts to transform Bangalore as the Information Technology capital of India.
Krishna, 77, a Fulbright Scholar educated in George Washington and Southern Methodist Universities in the US, has had a roller coaster ride in politics that has seen him occupy positions of power as Union Minister, Speaker, Chief Minister and Governor.
Handpicked by the late P V Narasimha Rao as the chief ministerial candidate in Karnataka in the 1994 Assembly elections, he lost to H D Deve Gowda in the race for power and to had overcome the image of "elitist" politician he had come to acquire.