Former Reserve Bank of India Governor Bimal Jalan on Thursday ruled out the possibility of his becoming the next finance minister, saying he did not belong to any political party.
"There is no question of becoming finance minister since I don't belong to that party (Congress)," Jalan told a private news channel.
Jalan, who was nominated to Rajya Sabha by the National Democratic Alliance government after completing his tenure as RBI Governor in October 2003, said he would like to make it clear that he was more like an "independent" member and was not in any party.
Jalan's statement came amid speculation that he could be a contender for the post of finance minister.
He said Prime Minister-designate Manmohan Singh, an economist by profession, has proved during his tenure as the finance minister that he could be successful in politicas as he understood the pulse of the people besides being an able and experienced administrator.
Asked what were the economic challenges that the new Congress-led coalition government faced, Jalan said resources were scarce and poverty was widespread and "we have to make a lot of progress."