Nirmala Sitharaman is an Indian economist and politician who has served as the Union Minister of Finance and Corporate Affairs since 2019. She was reappointed to this position in June 2024 as part of the Third Modi ministry. Prior to this, she served as the Defence Minister from September 2017. A member of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) since 2008, she was elected as a member of the Rajya Sabha from Karnataka in July 2016.