Smriti Irani, a former Union Minister who is now a writer, is a recent e-Adda attendee

Smriti Irani, Union Minister for Women and Child Development, has taken on new responsibilities. Irani has gone from being the lead character in a prime time TV series to a Lok Sabha candidate who wrenched the Gandhi family bastion of Amethi in the 2019 elections to a member of the Cabinet, where she most recently piloted the Prohibition of Child Marriage (Amendment) Bill, 2021, which seeks to raise the legal age of marriage for women from 18 to 21 years, and now she is also an author.

The story of a brave police officer and his quest for truth among a fog of contradicting versions and challenges is described in her book Lal Salaam, which is framed by the slaughter of 76 CRPF troops in Dantewada in April 2010.

On Monday, Irani will be the guest of The Indian Express e-Adda.

Irani will be one of her party's top campaigners in five states that go to the polls next month. She has established herself as one of the BJP's most important speakers both within and outside Parliament, speaking Hindi, English, Gujarati, Bengali, and Marathi.

Irani, who formerly held the HRD and I&B portfolios, has proposed numerous landmark Bills in Parliament as Women and Child Development Minister, the most latest of which is the Prohibition of Child Marriage (Amendment) Bill, 2021. The Ministry of Justice also modified the Juvenile Justice Act, and the long-awaited Trafficking in Persons (Prevention, Care, and Rehabilitation) Bill, 2021, is expected to be submitted in Parliament soon.

Irani will speak with Anant Goenka, Executive Director of The Indian Express Group, and Vandita Mishra, National Opinion Editor of The Indian Express, at the Express e-Adda.

The Express Adda features interviews with people at the forefront of change and has previously featured actors Pankaj Tripathi, Manoj Bajpayee, CNN host Fareed Zakaria, Uday Kotak, Ruchir Sharma, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, CMD of Kotak Mahindra Bank, and Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi. The Adda is held virtually during the pandemic.