Amit Shah takes charge as Union Home Minister in new cabinet

New Delhi: BJP chief Amit Shah on Saturday took charge as new Union Home Minister, after he registered a thumping victory from Gandhinagar Lok Sabha seat in 2019 LS polls by a margin of 5,57,014 votes against his rival Congress Candidate CJ Chavda.

Shah was received at the North Block office of the home ministry by Union Home Secretary Rajiv Gauba, Intelligence Bureau Chief Rajiv Jain and other senior officials.

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Two newly appointed Ministers of state for home - G K Reddy and Nityananda Rai - also took charge Saturday.

A home ministry official said Shah is expected to prioritise the NDA government's policy of zero tolerance towards terrorism and checking illegal immigration.

The new home minister's immediate task would be handling the situation in Jammu and Kashmir, which is under the President's rule, and situation which may arise after the publication of the final National Register of Citizens (NRC) in Assam.

The BJP-led NDA has received a landslide mandate in the just-concluded Lok Sabha elections with the saffron party winning 303 of the 542 seats that went to polls this time.

Shah was the key architect of the BJP's victory as the party President.

Kerala Governor P Sathasivam and Maharashtra Governor C Vidyasagar Rao were among the first who made courtesy calls on the home minister.

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(With Agency Inputs)