Smriti, Sadananda Gowda out of inter-state council

Irani and Gowda, who were permanent invitees to the council headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, were divested of their Human Resource Development (HRD) and Law and Justice portfolios respectively in the last Cabinet reshuffle in July. 

Irani is now Textiles Minister, while Gowda holds Statistics and Programme Implementation portfolio. Both the ministers were dropped from the council which was reconstituted on Tuesday, according to an official order. 

HRD Minister Prakash Javadekar has been included in the new council. Ravi Shankar Prasad, Minister of Electronics and Information Technology, who also holds the Law and Justice portfolio, continues to be on the council. The Inter-State Council was established in May 1990 with a mandate to act as a coordinating body between the states and the Centre.

It is tasked to inquire into and advising upon disputes which may have arisen between states and also to investigate and discuss subjects in which some or all of the states, or the Union, have a common interest.