New Delhi: Prime Minister-designate Manmohan Singh today (May 20, 2004) kept up the suspense on who would be the next Finance Minister, saying he had yet to decide on the matter.

"I have not yet given a thought to it," Singh said when asked if he would keep the finance portfolio to himself.

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It was during his tenure as Finance Minister in P V Narasimha Rao's Government that India took the bold decision of starting economic reforms in 1991 after the country pledged its gold reserves to prevent a default in repayment of external debt.

There are speculations that the responsibility of Finance Ministry might fall on senior Congress leader Pranab Mukherjee or former Finance Minister in United Front Government P Chidambaram, if Singh chose not to retain finance portfolio with him.