Indian Minister of State for Finance and Corporate Affairs Anurag Thakur on Wednesday became the first serving union minister to be promoted as Captain in the Territorial Army as a regular commissioned officer.
Thakur has been promoted to the rank of Captain at 124 Infantry Battalion Territorial Army (Sikh). “It is an honour and pride to be part of the Territorial Army and a part of 124 Sikh Regiment,” Thakur told media.
“This is the third generation from my family who is serving in the armed forces. It is an honour to be part of both army and the Parliament. I come from a constituency and state where people from every third house serve in the army. The first army officer to be honoured by the Param Vir Chakra was from Himachal Pradesh only,” he added.
“I was commissioned as a regular officer into the Territorial Army in July 2016 as a Lieutenant. Today I am honoured to share, I have been promoted to the rank of Captain. I reaffirm my commitment for serving the people and the call of duty towards mother India,” he had tweeted earlier in the day.
Mr Thakur is a member of the Lower House of Parliament in India from Hamirpur in Himachal Pradesh.
He assumed charge of office as the MoS Finance & Corporate Affairs in 2019. He was first elected to Lok Sabha in May 2008 in a by-poll as a candidate of BJP. He was re-elected to the 15th Lok Sabha in 2009, 16th Loksabha in 2014, and 17th Loksabha in 2019. Later, Thakur was appointed the president of the All India Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha.
In July 2016, he became a part of the territorial army, becoming the first serving BJP MP to become a regular commissioned officer in the Territorial Army.
