Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government’s prominent Muslim face Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi resigned as India’s Minority Affairs Minister on Wednesday.
The 64-year-old’s sudden resignation comes a day before his term as a member of Rajya Sabha (Upper House of Parliament) ends, triggering speculation that he may run for the Vice-President of India.
Earlier in the day, Naqvi met with Prime Minister Modi and BJP president JP Nadda.
“He has handed over his resignation to Modi after the meeting,” sources told UNB.
Naqvi began his political career as a student leader and was jailed during the Emergency. He served as junior Information and Broadcasting Minister in former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s government in the late 1990s.
Incumbent Vice-President M Venkaiah Naidu’s five-year term ends on August 10. The elections are slated for August 6.
