India's new home minister entrusts just 2 people with several divisions

• Amit Shah’s deputies in MHA, G Kishan Reddy and Nityanand Rai, assigned all 21 divisions.

• In a first time ever, Jammu and Kashmir and northeast divisions will be headed by one minister of state.

• Intelligence Bureau to report directly to Amit Shah.

• Shah will also cater to decisioning about Cabinet matters and President’s house.

New Union home minister Amit Shah on Tuesday, 17 June, 2019, assigned all the 21 divisions of his ministry, to two of his deputies - ministers of state G Kishan Reddy and Nityanand Rai. The reporting of Intelligence Bureau is to remain with Shah, according to reports.

The Jammu and Kashmir division was headed by Hansraj Ahir and northeast division was headed by Kiren Rijiju, Shah’s predecessor Rajnath Singh.

The key divisions of Jammu and Kashmir, the northeast, Union Territory, cyber security and counter-radicalisation, are assigned to G Kishan Reddy, while centre-state division, Police-I (that looks after transfer postings of IPS officers), foreigners divisions among others are assigned to Nityanand Rai.

Shah will look after all decisions involving Cabinet matters and President’s house, besides IB. AS officials told Economic Times.

Reportedly, Shah has also tasked the two deputies with taking presentation from every division at the home ministry for better sync in their functioning. The home minister also reviewed details regarding the functioning of the MHA on the first day of taking charge at the North Block.

In a first time ever, both the northeast and Jammu and Kashmir divisions have been allocated to the same minister of state.

G Kishan Reddy is a three-time MLA and is a first-term MP from Secunderabad Lok Sabha constituency in Telangana.

Nityanand Rai, who won from the Ujiarpur constituency in Bihar, has also been assigned incharge of women safety division, that was created last year following the Kathua rape case.

Rai will also head the Left-wing extremism (LWE) division, that looks at anti-Maoist operations, besides disaster management and police modernisation division, as reported by officials.

There are 24 ministers of state in the present council of ministers and six other ministers of state with independent charge.