EAM S Jaishankar takes oath as Rajya Sabha MP

New Delhi, July 08: External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, who was elected to the Rajya Sabha from Gujarat on Friday, took oath as the Member of the Upper House today.

Jaishankar, a career diplomat and former Foreign Secretary, was Modi's surprise pick for External Affairs Minister during his second term as the Prime Minister. Jaishankar replaced senior BJP leader Sushma Swaraj as the External Affairs Minister who did not contest the elections due to health reasons.

Jaishankar had served as the Foreign Secretary in the previous Modi-led government. He was inducted into the Union cabinet in Modi's second term.

Jaishankar and Jugalji Thakor won Rajya Sabha by-elections in Gujarat on Friday by defeating Congress' Chandrika Chudasama and Gaurav Pandya are hoping to win the seats.

The by-polls on the two seats from Gujarat were held after the BJP's sitting Rajya Sabha MPs Amit Shah and Smriti Irani resigned following their election to the Lok Sabha in May from Gandhinagar and Amethi, respectively.