How educated are Modi's cabinet ministers?

Just days after the Narendra Modi government took charge, a major controversy erupted over the educational qualification of Union HRD Minister Smriti Irani. In the wake of the same, we look at the academic prowess of other ministers in the Modi cabinet.

Cabinet Ministers:

Prime Minister Narendra Modi

Narendra Modi (Prime Minister): India's 15th Prime Minister holds an extramural degree in Political Science, which was achieved through distance education from the Delhi University in the year 1978.

Rajnath Singh

Rajnath Singh (Home Minister): India's Home Minister holds a masters degree in Physics from the Gorakhpur University. He was also a professor of Physics before plunging into active politics.

Arun Jaitley

Arun Jaitley (Finance and Defence Minister): Jaitley, former law minister during Atal Bihari Vajpayee's NDA regime, holds a degree in law from the University of Delhi and has also been a senior advocate of the Supreme Court.

Sushma Swaraj

Sushma Swaraj (Minister for Foreign Affairs): India's second woman foreign minister and first woman chief minister of Delhi has her LL.B degree from the Punjab University in Chandigarh and has also practiced as a Supreme Court lawyer.

Harshvardhan (Health Minister): One of the most qualified ministers in the cabinet, India's health minister holds an M.B.B.S as well as an M.S in otolaryngology.

Maneka Gandhi (Women and Child Development): The women and child development minister and a staunch animal rights activist, Maneka Gandhi has complete her education upto the 12th grade.

Anant Geete (Heavy Industry and Public Enterprise): Geete, the leader of the Shiv Sena Parliamentary Party and a six time MP is currently the Union Minister for Heavy Industry and Public Enterprise. He has completed his matriculation.

Uma Bharti (Water Resources and Ganga Rejuvination): The current water resource and ‘Ganga Rejuvination' minister is the least qualified minister in the Modi cabinet, having completed formal education only till class six.

DV Sadanand Gowda (Railways): The Union Minister for Railways has a degree in law from the Udupi Vaikunta Baliga College of Law.

Nitin Gadkari (Transport): Known as ‘Flyover Man' during the Sena-BJP government in Maharashtra, Gadkari currently holds the transport portfolio in the Modi Cabinet. He holds a degree in Law from the Nagpur University.

Smriti Irani (Human Resource Development): The minister under fire has completed her H.S.C while her earlier affidavit states that she has completed her B.Com through correspondence from Delhi University.

Najma Heptulla (Minority Affairs): The first-time cabinet minister is now incharge of the ministry of Minority Affairs. The 74 year old has a Ph.D in Cardiac Anatomy from the University of Denver.

M Venkaiah Naidu (Parliamentary Affairs): The union minister for parliamentary affairs has his bachelor's degree in Politics and Diplomatic studies as well as a degree in Law with a specialization in International law from the Andhra University.

Gopinath Munde (Rural Development Minister, Panchayati Raj, Drinking Water and Sanitation): The union minister for Union Development has a BA degree in commerce.

Ramvilas Paswan (Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution): The minister of Consumer Affairs; Food and Public Distribution is an M.A, LL.B from the University of Patna.

Kalraj Mishra (Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises): The union minister of the Narendra Modi cabinet has an M.A from the Kashi Vidyapeeth in Varanasi.

Ananth Kumar (Chemicals and Fertilizers): The Union Minister for Chemical and Fertilizers and a six time MP from Bangalore is a B.A from the University of Karnataka.

Ravi Shankar Prasad (Law and Justice, Communications & Information Technology): The union minister for Communications and I.T. has a B.A, M.A in Political Science and a degree in Law from the Patna University.

Ashok Gajapati Raju (Civil Aviation): The current civil aviation minister is has completed his matriculation.

Harsimrat Kaur Badal (Food Processing Industries): The union minister for food processing industries has a Diploma in Textile Design.

Narendra Singh Tomar (Steel, Labour and Employment, Mines): The union minister of mines, steel, labour and employment holds a B.A degree.

Radha Mohan Singh (Ministry of Agriculture): The MP from East Champaran and the Union Minister of Agriculture has a B.A from the Bihar University.

Thawar Chand Gehlot (Social Justice & Empowerment): The cabinet minister in the Narendra Modi Government has a B.A degree.

Jual Oram (Tribal Affairs): The union minister of Tribal Affairs and a three time MP from Sundergarh in Odisha has a Diploma in Electrical Engineering.

Minister of State (Independent Charge):

V. K. Singh

Gen. V.K. Singh (Development of North-East region): The former chief of Army Staff and current MoS for foreign affairs and Independent charge for the development of the North East Region, V. K. Singh is a graduate from the National Defence Academy. He did his M.Sc in defence studies from the Madras University. He also did his Masters in Strategic Studies from the Army War College in the Eastern University of Pennsylvania and also has a Ph.D from the Barkatullah University in Bhopal.

Indrajeet Singh Rao (Planning, Statistics and Programme Implementation): The Minister of State has an LL.B from the University of Delhi.

Santosh Kumar Gangwar (Textile): The Minister of State has a B.Sc as well as a degree in law from the Agra University and Rohilkhand University.

Shripad Naik (Culture and Tourism): The MoS for culture (Independent Charge) has a B.A from the University of Mumbai.

Dharmendra Pradhan (Petroleum and Natural Gas): The MoS for Petroleum and Natural Gas has an M.A in Anthropology from the Odisha and Utkal University in Bhubhaneshwar.

Sarbanand Sonowal (Youth Affairs and Sports): The MoS for Youth Affairs and Sports along with Skill Development and Entrepreneurship has a degree in law.

Prakash Javdekar (Information and Broadcasting): The MoS for Information and Broadcasting has a bachelor's degree in Commerce.

Piyush Goyal (Coal, Power and Energy): The MoS for Coal, Power and Energy has a degree in commerce as well as a degree in law.

Jitendra Singh (Science and Technology): The MP from Udhampur and MoS for Science and Technology and Earth Sciences has a Medical degree from the University of Madras.

Nirmala Sitaraman (Commerce and Industry): The MoS for Commerce and Industry as well as Finance and Corporate Affairs has a M.A in Economics as well as a M.Phill in International Studies and a Ph.D

Ministers of State

G.M. Siddeswara (Civil Aviation): The MoS for Civil Aviation has completed his matriculation.

Manoj Sinha (Railway): The MoS for Railways has an M.Tech degree in Civil Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology in Varanasi.

Upendra Kushwaha (Rural Development, Sanitation, Drinking Water, Panchayati Raj): A Minister of State in the Modi government, Kushwaha has a M.A from the Bihar University.

Pon Radhakrishnan (Heavy Industry and Public Enterprise): The president of the BJP's state unit in Tamil Nadu and currently a Minister of State, has a B.A and a B.L from the Madras law College.

Sanjeev Kumar Balyan (Agriculture, Food Processing Industry): The current Minister of State has a Ph.D in Veterinary Anatomy.

Sudarshan Bhagat (Social Justice and Empowerment): He has a B.A from the University of Ranchi.

Nihalchand Chauhan (Chemicals and Fertilizers): Graduate from the Shaheed Bhagat Singh Degree College.

Kiren Rijiju (Home Affairs): A B.A, LL.B from the Delhi University.

Krishan Pal (Road Transport, Highway and Shipping): A B.A, LL.B from the JNU and from the Meerut University.

Vishnu Deo Sai (Mines, Steel, Labour and Employment): Sai has completed his education till class XI

Mansukhbhai Vasava (Tribal Affairs): He is a graduate from the Gujarat University.

Raosaheb Patil Danve (Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution): He has studied till class 12th.

(Compiled by Hormaz Fatakia)