The Brass-Knuckle Band

The Big Four in the Union cabinet are known for their toughness and tenacity. Will they help Modi set the rhythm for his second term?

- Mandira Nayar, Namrata Biji Ahuja, Pratul Sharma, Pradip R. Sagar And Soumik Dey

Narendra Modi’s big day is still three years away. The moment of glory will arrive when he plays host to the world’s most powerful heads of states at the G20 summit in Delhi in 2022, the 75th year of India’s independence. The prime minister has set that year as the deadline for his ministers to achieve various governance goals—economic, social, national security and diplomatic.

Modi 2.0 marks a transition from tentative trust to resolute faith in the top four ministers—Rajnath Singh, Amit Shah, Nirmala Sitharaman and S. Jaishankar, who are part of the cabinet committee on security (CCS). There are now more hawks than doves in the CCS, the most powerful cabinet subcommittee. With Ajit Doval retained as national security adviser with cabinet rank, that message is only clearer. He will continue to drive India’s security establishment, from behind the scenes.

Modi played disrupter again when he brought in his most trusted aide, Amit Shah, to head the Union home ministry. Shah’s decision to contest the Lok Sabha elections from Gandhinagar, which had been L.K. Advani’s constituency, was the first giveaway that he was eyeing a role in the government.