This minister in Modi's cabinet is poorest; check net worth of others

Lucknow: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday inducted nine new faces to his Council of Ministers, of whom Alphons Kannanthanam is the poorest, while Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) does not have any data regarding Hardeep Singh Puri due to his bureaucratic background.

Mentioned below are the details of the assets of the newly inducted ministers:

1. Shiv Pratap Shukla (Uttar Pradesh)

• Shiv Pratap Shukla is a Rajya Sabha MP from Uttar Pradesh. He is a Member of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Rural Development.
• He was elected a Member of the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly for 4 consecutive times in 1989, 1991, 1993 and 1996.
• While filing his nomination for the Rajya Sabha seat, Shukla in his affidavit had declared to have owned assets worth Rs 7.35 crore. He, however, did not have any liabilities.
• According to the affidavit, there are two cases against Shukla.
• He served as a Cabinet Minister in the Uttar Pradesh government for 8 years, and is known for his work in Rural Development, Education and Prison reform during his tenure.
• A Law Graduate with an LLB from Gorakhpur University, Shiv Pratap Shukla started off early in politics as a student leader in the 1970s.
• He was imprisoned for 19 months under the Maintenance of Internal Security Act (MISA) during the Emergency.

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2. Ashwini Kumar Choubey (Bihar)

• Ashwini Kumar Choubey is a Lok Sabha MP from Buxar, Bihar. He is member of the Parliamentary Committee on Estimates and Standing Committee on Energy. He is also a Member of Central Silk Board.
• He has been elected for 5 consecutive terms to the Bihar Legislative Assembly. He has held important portfolios including Health, Urban Development and Public Health Engineering as a Cabinet Minister of the Government of Bihar for 8 years.
• During the 2014 General Elections, Choubey had declared to have owned moveable and immoveable assets worth Rs 2.21 crore. He had total liabilities of Rs 19 lakh, while no cases were registered against him.
• Starting early in politics as the President of the Student's Union of Patna University, Ashwini Kumar Choubey was an active part of the JP movement in the 1970s. He was taken into custody during the Emergency under MISA.
• Ashwini Kumar Choubey is credited to have raised the slogan “Ghar – Ghar me ho Shouchalaya ka nirman, Tabhi hoga Ladli Bitiya ka Kanyadaan”, and has helped construct 11,000 toilets for Mahadalit families.
• Having faced the disastrous Kedarnath floods with his family in 2013, Ashwini Kumar Choubey has authored a book ‘Kedarnath Trasadi’ on the tragedy.
• A BSc (Hons) in Zoology, he has a special interest in Yoga.

3. Virendra Kumar (Madhya Pradesh)

• Virendra Kumar is a Lok Sabha MP from Tikamgah, Madhya Pradesh. He has had a distinguished career in Public Service as a 6 term Lok Sabha MP.
• Virendra Kumar is the Chairperson of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Labour, and has been Chairman of the Joint Committee on Office of Profit and a Member of National Social Security Board.
• As per the affidavit submitted while filing nominations for the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, Kumar owned total assets worth Rs 87.64 lakh, while he had no liabilities or criminal cases registered against him.
• During his multiple stints in Parliament, Virendra Kumar has amongst others been a Member of the Parliamentary Committees on Labour and Welfare, Welfare of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, Privileges, Petroleum and Natural Gas.
• Virendra Kumar had actively participated in the JP movement of the 1970s, and went to jails for 16 months under MISA during the Emergency. He had initiated a movement for solving the problems faced by students and opened a library for their assistance.
• Coming from the Scheduled Caste community, Virendra Kumar has dedicated his life to its service. He has been engaging youth in removing the barriers of caste and class, and works for building orphanages, schools for divyang and old age homes.
• Highly qualified academically, Virendra Kumar is armed with an MA in Economics and a PhD in Child Labour.

4. Anant Kumar Hegde (Karnataka)

• Anant Kumar Hegde is a Lok Sabha MP from Uttara Kannada, Karnataka. He is a Member of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on External Affairs and Human Resource Development.
• Having been elected as an MP for the first time at the young age of 28 years, Anantkumar Hedge is now a 5th term Lok Sabha MP.
• He has total moveable and immovable assets worth Rs 3.23 crore, while he has liabilities worth Rs 1.5 crore. There are no criminal cases registered against him.
• During his multiple stints in Parliament, he has been a member of multiple Parliamentary Standing Committees including the likes of Finance, Home Affairs, Human Resource Development, Commerce, Agriculture and External Affairs.
• He has also been a member of the Spices Board of India for 4 terms.
• With a deep focus on rural India, Anantkumar Hegde is the Founder President of Kadamba, an NGO working in the field of rural development, rural health, SHGs, rural marketing and other rural welfare programmes.
• He is a practitioner of Tae-kwon-do, a Korean Martial Art.

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5. Raj Kumar Singh (Bihar)

• Raj Kumar Singh is a Lok Sabha MP from Arrah, Bihar. He is a Member of the Parliamentary Standing Committees on Health and Family Welfare, Personnel, Pensions and Public Grievances and Law & Justice.
• Raj Kumar Singh is a former IAS officer of the 1975 batch, Bihar cadre.
• As per the affidavit submitted while filing nominations papers for the 2014 LS polls, he owns assets worth Rs 4.84 crore. He has neither any liabilities nor any criminal cases registered against him.
• He rose up the ranks to become the Home Secretary of India.
• In an illustrious career before, he served in multiple important roles of responsibility including Defence Production Secretary and Joint Secretary Home; as well as heading Home, Industries, Public Works and Agriculture amongst other departments in the Bihar Government. He is known for his contributions to schemes for Police Modernization and Prison Modernization, and laying down a framework for Disaster Management.
• A well-read man, Raj Kumar Singh studied English Literature at St. Stephens College, New Delhi, and got a Bachelors Degree in Law thereafter. He also went on to study at the RVB Delft University in Netherlands.

6. Gajendra Singh Shekhawat (Rajasthan)

• Gajendra Singh Shekhawat is a Lok Sabha MP from Jodhpur, Rajasthan. He is a Member of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Finance and Chairperson of the Fellowship Committee.
• As per the affidavit submitted while filing nominations papers for the 2014 LS polls, he owns assets worth Rs 14.35 crore. He has liabilities worth Rs 9 crore, while he is not charged in any criminal case.
• As a technology-savvy, progressive farmer; Gajendra Singh Shekhawat is a role model for the rural community.
• Known for his simple life style, he is one of the most followed political leaders on Quora globally (a popular Q&A blogging site).
• His popularity on social media exemplifies his connect with the youth of today.
• A sports enthusiast, Gajendra Singh Shekhawat has participated at National and All India Inter University level in Basket Ball. He currently is a Member of the All India Council of Sports and the President of Basketball India Players Association.
• He has an MPhil & MA in Philosophy from Jai Narain Vyas University, Jodhpur.

7. Satyapal Singh (Uttar Pradesh)

• Satyapal Singh is a Lok Sabha MP from Baghpat, Uttar Pradesh. He is a Member of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Home Affairs and Chairperson of the Joint Committee on Offices of Profit.
• He is a distinguished former IPS officer of the 1980 batch, Maharashtra cadre, and has been recognized with medals like the Antrik Suraksha Sewa Padak by Government of India in 2008 and a Special Service Medal for extraordinary work in the Naxalite areas of Andhra Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh in 1990.
• As per the affidavit submitted while filing nominations papers for the 2014 LS polls, he owns assets worth Rs 6.74 crore. His liabilities worth Rs 3.5 lakh and there are no criminal cases against him.
• He has been the Commissioner of Police of Mumbai, Pune and Nagpur – and is credited for breaking the backbone of organised crime syndicates in Mumbai in the 1990s.
• He has written best-selling books, including on topics like tribal conflict resolution and Naxalism. He is a scholar of Vedic studies and Sanskrit, and regularly delivers lectures on spirituality, religious harmony and corruption.
• Born in Basauli village in Baghpat, he has a MSc and MPhil in Chemistry, MBA in Strategic Management from Australia, MA in Public Administration as well as a PhD in Naxalism.

8. Hardeep Singh Puri (Diplomat)

• Hardeep Puri is a decorated former IFS officer of the 1974 batch, known for his experience and expertise in foreign policy and national security.
• He is the President and Chairman of Research and Information System for Developing Countries (RIS) think tank, and was the Vice President of International Peace Institute, New York.
• As he belongs to bureaucratic circles, there is no data available about his assets.
• He distinguished four-decade career in diplomacy spanning the multilateral arena, included critical roles of Ambassador and Permanent Representative of India to the United Nations, Ambassador to Brazil and the United Kingdom and Permanent Representative of India to Geneva.
• As Head of the Indian Delegation to the UN Security Council, Hardeep Puri had served as Chairman of the Counter-Terrorism Committee of the UN as well as President of the United Nations Security Council.
• An alumnus of The Hindu College, Delhi University, Hardeep Puri was a student leader and active during the JP movement. He briefly taught at St. Stephens College before joining the IFS.

9. Alphons Kannanthanam (Kerala)

• Alphons Kannanthanam is a distinguished former IAS officer of the 1979 batch, Kerala cadre. He is also a practicing advocate.
• He became famous as Delhi’s Demolition Man when he was Commissioner of the Delhi Development Authority, having cleared DDA areas of encroachment removing around 15,000 illegal buildings. This got him listed in Time Magazine’s list of 100 Young Global Leaders in 1994.
• During his tenure as an Independent legislator in Kerala during 2006 to 2011, he had claimed to have owned total assets worth Rs 19 lakh. His liabilities were worth Rs 21 lakh.
• Born in a non-electrified Manimala village in Kottayam district to a World War 2 veteran, he pioneered the literacy movement in India as District Collector of Kottayam by making it the first 100% literate town in India in 1989.
• He set up Janshakti, an NGO in 1994, to get citizens to believe in their ability to make government accountable to people.
• He retired from the IAS, to get elected as an Independent Member of Legislative Assembly for Kanjirappally in Kerala from 2006 to 2011.
• He is a Member of the Committee to prepare the final draft of the National Education Policy 2017.
• Alphons Kannanthanam has authored a bestselling book “Making A Difference”.