Rajasthan
Raj CM to be in Delhi today to discuss induction of ministers & portfolios; 20 names shortlisted | Jaipur News
JAIPUR: Chief Minister Bhajan Lal Sharma is leaving for New Delhi on Sunday at the invitation of BJP’s central leadership for a discussion on the induction of 13-15 more ministers in his cabinet and the selection of their portfolios. The induction is expected next week at the Governor’s House.
Sharma is likely to meet PM Narendra Modi, Union home minister Amit Shah and BJP national president JP Nadda in what is going to be his first visit to Delhi after being sworn in as the 14th CM of Rajasthan on Friday.
“The party’s state leaders and observers have shortlisted 20 names for the posts of cabinet ministers and ministers of state. It will be further discussed with senior party leaders in a meeting in Delhi. The names have been shortlisted with an eye on caste and regional balance,” said a BJP source familiar with the cabinet expansion exercise.
As per the rule, considering the 200-member House Rajasthan has, the state can have a maximum of 29 ministers and a chief minister. Three cabinet berths have already been filled with the swearing in of Sharma as CM and that of Diya Kumari and Prem Chand Bairwa as cabinet ministers (deputy CMs) on Friday.
“A competition of sorts is on for the remaining 27 cabinet berths, of which 13-15 may be filled in the first round, and the new ministers may take oaths next week. The shortlist has several fresh faces as a way of cashing in on first-time and young voters the party has steadily gained,” said the source.
The party is also keeping the Lok Sabha elections due next year in mind while picking the names for cabinet berths. “A couple of senior leaders may not find space in the cabinet as they might contest the Lok Sabha polls,” added the source.
With pressure building up from different castes and communities for cabinet berths to their representatives, BJP is reportedly trying to accommodate the communities left out and strike a perfect balance. CM Sharma is a Brahmin, and his deputies Diya Kumari and Bairwa are from the Rajput and SC communities respectively. The party is working on accommodating MLAs from communities such as the Jats, Gujjars, Meenas, tribals and Vaishyas in Sharma’s cabinet, said sources.
Former Rajya Sabha member and newly elected Sawai Madhopur MLA Kirori Lal Meena, firebrand leader and Tijara MLA Balak Nath, religious guru and former cow welfare minister Otaram Dewasi, and RSS-backed Jogeshwar Garg, the MLA from Jalore, are reportedly on top in the shortlist.
Of the women frontrunners for cabinet berths, the inclusion of Kaman MLA Nauksham Chaudhary, Rajasamand MLA Deepti Maheswari, and Ajmer South MLA Anita Bhadel is “almost confirmed,” said a source. “It is most unlikely that any MLA considered close to former CM Vasundhara Raje will find a ministerial berth in the first round,” said a BJP leader. Sharma is said to have discussed the date of the swearing-in ceremony for the new ministers in a meeting he had with Governor Kalraj Mishra on Saturday.
Sharma is likely to meet PM Narendra Modi, Union home minister Amit Shah and BJP national president JP Nadda in what is going to be his first visit to Delhi after being sworn in as the 14th CM of Rajasthan on Friday.
“The party’s state leaders and observers have shortlisted 20 names for the posts of cabinet ministers and ministers of state. It will be further discussed with senior party leaders in a meeting in Delhi. The names have been shortlisted with an eye on caste and regional balance,” said a BJP source familiar with the cabinet expansion exercise.
As per the rule, considering the 200-member House Rajasthan has, the state can have a maximum of 29 ministers and a chief minister. Three cabinet berths have already been filled with the swearing in of Sharma as CM and that of Diya Kumari and Prem Chand Bairwa as cabinet ministers (deputy CMs) on Friday.
“A competition of sorts is on for the remaining 27 cabinet berths, of which 13-15 may be filled in the first round, and the new ministers may take oaths next week. The shortlist has several fresh faces as a way of cashing in on first-time and young voters the party has steadily gained,” said the source.
The party is also keeping the Lok Sabha elections due next year in mind while picking the names for cabinet berths. “A couple of senior leaders may not find space in the cabinet as they might contest the Lok Sabha polls,” added the source.
With pressure building up from different castes and communities for cabinet berths to their representatives, BJP is reportedly trying to accommodate the communities left out and strike a perfect balance. CM Sharma is a Brahmin, and his deputies Diya Kumari and Bairwa are from the Rajput and SC communities respectively. The party is working on accommodating MLAs from communities such as the Jats, Gujjars, Meenas, tribals and Vaishyas in Sharma’s cabinet, said sources.
Former Rajya Sabha member and newly elected Sawai Madhopur MLA Kirori Lal Meena, firebrand leader and Tijara MLA Balak Nath, religious guru and former cow welfare minister Otaram Dewasi, and RSS-backed Jogeshwar Garg, the MLA from Jalore, are reportedly on top in the shortlist.
Of the women frontrunners for cabinet berths, the inclusion of Kaman MLA Nauksham Chaudhary, Rajasamand MLA Deepti Maheswari, and Ajmer South MLA Anita Bhadel is “almost confirmed,” said a source. “It is most unlikely that any MLA considered close to former CM Vasundhara Raje will find a ministerial berth in the first round,” said a BJP leader. Sharma is said to have discussed the date of the swearing-in ceremony for the new ministers in a meeting he had with Governor Kalraj Mishra on Saturday.
