New Delhi, July 4: A total of 19 new ministers, some from dalit community, are set to be inducted in the Union Council of Ministers today in the second expansion to be carried out by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, an exercise being done ahead of assembly polls in UP and a few other states next year.
The expansion-cum-reshuffle being carried out by Modi is also expected to see elevation of at least one minister to Cabinet rank. Some of the 19 new ministers are expected to get independent charge, the sources said.
Ahead of the expansion, Modi was quoted as saying that Tuesday’s expansion of his ministry will reflect “budget focus and priorities”. BJP sources said some ministers may also be dropped.
In the expansion, the second since Modi took over in May, 2014 new faces like Anupriya Patel, an OBC Lok Sabha member of ally Apna Dal in Uttar Pradesh, besides BJP MPs S S Ahluwalia (West Bengal) and Purshottam Rupala, a Rajya Sabha member from Gujarat, may be inducted.
Krishna Raj, a dalit woman MP from Uttar Pradesh, Mahendra Nath Pandey, a Brahmin face in the state, Ajay Tamta, a dalit MP from Uttarakhand, which also goes to polls next year, also figure in the list of probables.
Arjun Ram Meghwal, a dalit BJP MP from Rajasthan, Ramdas Athawale, another dalit leader and RPI MP from Maharashtra, can get ministerial berths besides Subhash Ramrao Bhamre, who is also from Maharashtra, and Mansukhbhai Mandaviya, a Rajya Sabha member from Gujarat.
The names of Rajya Sabha MPs Vijay Goel, M J Akbar, Anil Madhav Dave and P P Chaudhary, Lok Sabha member from Rajasthan, have also been doing the rounds as possible inductions. Faggan Singh Kulhaste, who was embroiled in the cash-for-votes scam during the UPA-1 rule, C R Chaudhary (Gujarat), Jasvantsinh Bhabhor (Gujarat) Rajen Gohain (Assam) and Ramesh Chandappa Jigajinagi (Karnataka) are also likely to be inducted.
Many of these leaders Monday met party chief Amit Shah, who is also likely to announce the party’s organisational team soon. Frank Noronha, principal spokesperson of the government, tweeted Monday that the cabinet expansion will take place Tuesday at 11 am.
There is also a vacancy in the Council of Ministers after sports minister Sarbananda Sonowal became the Chief Minister of Assam. first expansion had occurred in November 2014.
There are currently 64 Union ministers, including the Prime Minister, and there can be a maximum of 82 of them under a constitutional bar. The sources said the expansion comes after an exhaustive vetting and selection process to find the best talent. Agencies
