Rahul Gandhi In Parliament's Defence Committee, Kangana Ranaut Makes Debut

Each department-related standing committees - which has representation from across party lines - acts as 'mini parliaments' and keeps a tab on the functioning of their related ministries.

Congress MP Rahul Gandhi retains his membership of Parliament's Standing Committee on Defence, while actor-politician and the BJP's first-time parliamentarian Kangana Ranaut has been assigned to the committee on Information Technology, or IT, the Rajya Sabha Secretariat said in a notification issued Thursday.

Mr Gandhi, who is also Leader of the Opposition in the Lower House, was a member of the Defence Committee in the previous Lok Sabha too. The committee will be chaired by BJP MP Radha Mohan Singh. The Congress has been given the chair of four committees, including the one for External Affairs, which will be led by its former Foreign Minister Shashi Tharoor.