Rajasthan Cabinet reshuffle: Fifteen ministers to take oath today
Jaipur(PTI): Fifteen new Rajasthan ministers will take oath at 4 pm on Sunday at the Raj Bhavan here as part of the Cabinet reshuffle, officials said.
The ministers include 11 Cabinet ministers and four ministers of state (MoS). The new Rajasthan cabinet will see 12 new faces, including five from the Sachin Pilot camp, in the reshuffle on Sunday.
This is the first cabinet reshuffle of the Gehlot government which came to power in December 2018.
Three ministers -- Govind Singh Dotasra, Harish Chaudhary and Raghu Sharma -- have been dropped and their resignations have been accepted by the governor on recommendation of the chief minister while three ministers -- Mamta Bhupesh, Tikaram Jully and Bhajan Lal Jatav-- will be elevated from MoS to cabinet rank.
While Dotasra, Chaudhary and Sharma resigned on Friday, other ministers resigned in a meeting of council of ministers on Saturday.
The resignation of Sharma, Chaudhary and Dotasra was accepted as they hold party positions and the "one man, one post" formula has been applied in the state.
Sharma has been appointed as the All India Congress Committee (AICC) in-charge for Gujarat and Chaudhary as the AICC in-charge for Punjab. Dotasra is the Rajasthan Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) chief.
The Ashok Gehlot-led Congress government will have a total of 30 ministers, including 18 who had resigned earlier.
Rajasthan can have a maximum of 30 ministers including the chief minister.
Three ministers of state -- those have been elevated to cabinet rank -- are from the Scheduled Caste (SC) community, party sources said.
The new state cabinet will have four SC members and three ministers from the Scheduled Tribe (ST) community, the sources said, adding that the cabinet will also feature three women -- a Muslim, one from the SC community and a Gujjar.
Among the new ministers to take oath as cabinet ministers are Hemaram Chaudhary, Mahendrajit Singh Malviya, Ramlal Jat, Mahesh Joshi, Vishvendra Singh, Ramesh Meena, Mamta Bhupesh Bhairwa, Bhajanlal Jatav, Tikaram Juli, Govind Ram Meghwal and Shakuntala Rawat.
Those who will take oath as the new ministers of state are Zahida, Brijendra Singh Ola, Rajendra Durha and Muralilal Meena.
Mahesh Joshi is the government chief whip.
Among those from the Sachin Pilot camp who have been included in the ministry are Vishvendra Singh, Ramesh Meena and Hemaram Chaudhary as cabinet ministers, and Brijendra Ola and Murari Meena as ministers of state.
Two of them -- Vishvendra Singh and Ramesh Meena -- were sacked as cabinet ministers during a political crisis in the state last year.
Another SC member, former MP Govind Ram Meghwal, is a fresh face to be included in the refurbished cabinet.
Rajendra Singh Guda, one of the six MLAs who defected from the BSP to the Congress, has also been included as a minister of state.
No independent MLA has been given a ministerial berth, while some of them would be included as parliamentary secretaries.
Some former BSP legislators would also be included as parliamentary secretaries, the sources said, adding that some senior MLAs would be made advisers to the chief minister.
After the Congress won bypolls held on two assembly seats recently, the tally of the ruling party has reached to 108 in the house of 200.
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BJP holds agitation demanding Minister Priyank Kharge's resignation over contractor's suicide
Kalaburagi (Karnataka) (PTI): The BJP on Saturday staged a protest here demanding the resignation of Minister Priyank Kharge in connection with the suicide of a Bidar-based civil contractor.
BJP State President B Y Vijayendra, Leader of Opposition in Karnataka Legislative Assembly R Ashoka, Legislative Council Leader of Opposition Chalavadi Narayanaswamy led the protest.
The saffron party leaders gathered at Jagat Circle in large numbers holding placards, raising slogans against the Minister amid tight security presence.
As the BJP planned lay siege to Kharge's residence, the Minister decided to counter them in a unique way. Police personnel were also seen deployed outside the residence as a precautionary measure to avoid any untoward incident.
"We have ordered tender coconuts, coffee, tea, bottled drinking water for the BJP leaders who will get tired after the protest," a Kharge supporter told PTI.
Reacting to the protest, Kharge told reporters that neither he nor the government will succumb to the opposition's demand and pressure tactics.
He said there are several cases against the BJP leaders, including a case under the POCSO Act against former Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa.
Yediyurappa is the father of BJP state chief B Y Vijayendra and Shivamogga MP B Y Raghavendra.
Mounting pressure on the ruling Congress in Karnataka, the BJP has reiterated its demand for a CBI inquiry into the contractor's suicide and resignation of Kharge.
Civil contractor Sachin Panchal on December 26 allegedly died by suicide by lying before a moving train in Bidar district.
In his suicide note, he accused Priyank Kharge’s close aide Raju Kapanur of compelling him to take the drastic step. He alleged that he was receiving death threats to pay rupees one crore to Kapanur who rejected the charges.
Priyank Kharge too said he had no role in the case as the suicide note did not name him. He also demanded an inquiry into the case to bring out the truth.
