Yogi Adityanath will be sworn in as Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister for a record second straight term tomorrow, likely with 45 ministers, sources said today, and hours after a late-night meeting of the BJP leadership.
Yogi Adityanath met Amit Shah, Union Home Minister and BJP chief JP Nadda last evening to finalize the names for his cabinet ahead of the oath ceremony on Friday.
The party has proved the speculation that a disagreement over cabinet names has held up the swearing-in wrong. Yogi Adityanath and Prime Minister Narendra Modi are “completely in sync” on cabinet names, sources said, downplaying any rift.
The BJP has not yet taken a call on the names of the deputy chief ministers, sources said. It is still not clear if the incumbents Keshav Maurya and Dinesh Sharma will continue. Mr Maurya, among the party’s biggest OBC faces in UP, lost the recent election, while Mr Sharma did not contest.
However, Mr Maurya, who is believed to be close to the BJP leadership, has reason to hope – in Uttarakhand, the BJP reappointed Pushkar Singh Dhami as Chief Minister even though he lost the election.
As for the rest of Yogi Adityanath’s cabinet, “proportional representation will be key”, say sources, adding that the BJP is now the natural choice for “all communities”. There will be special stress on OBC (Other Backward Class) and Scheduled Caste and scheduled Tribe ministers, they say.
There will be a stress on women ministers, according to sources. Many members of legislative council are also likely to be made ministers. Sources said that there will be room for a cabinet expansion later.
The BJP retained power in Uttarakhand, winning 47 of the 70 seats in the state assembly.
While the party is yet to confirm if it will continue with current chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami despite his defeat from Khatima, other probable names for the top job doing the rounds are BJP national spokesperson Anil Baluni, state education minister Dhan Singh Rawat, state BJP president Madan Kaushik, former Union education minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank, MLA Ritu Khanduri and Nainital MP Ajay Bhatt.
The BJP won elections in four out of five states that went to polls recently. The BJP won 47 seats in the 70-member assembly, paving the way for a second consecutive term in Uttarakhand. Chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, however, lost the election from the Khatima constituency.
The BJP became the first party in over three decades to form a government for a second consecutive time in the state.
The oath ceremony will be held at the Atal Bihari Vajpayee stadium in Lucknow. Chief Minister of all BJP rules states and other top politicians from across the country will attend the swearing in ceremony. PM Modi will be the chief guest.
Published by : Aditya Andharia
Edited By : Kritika Kashyap
