Fifteen leaders took oath as ministers in the Ashok Gehlot-led Rajasthan Cabinet on Sunday. Twelve of them were new faces, while three ministers of state were promoted to Cabinet positions.
The new ministers are Mahendrajeet Singh Malviya, Ramlal Jat, Mahesh Joshi, Vishvendra Singh, Ramesh Meena, Mamta Bhupesh Bairwa, Bhajan Lal Jatav, Teekaram Juli, Govind Ram Meghwal, Shakuntala Rawat, Brijendra Singh Ola and Murari Lal Meena, Zahida and Rejendra Gudha, reported ANI.
Eleven of the newly-inducted ministers have been given Cabinet ranks, while the other four have been appointed as ministers of state.
Rajasthan Governor Kalraj Mishra administered the oaths at an event in Jaipur.
The Cabinet reshuffle is being seen as a measure taken to placate Rajasthan’s former Deputy Chief Minister Sachin Pilot, who staged a revolt against Gehlot in July last year. Pilot’s rebellion had pushed the Rajasthan government to the brink of a collapse.
Five of the newly-inducted ministers are considered to be close to Pilot. Of them, Vishvendra Singh and Ramesh Meena were sacked as ministers following Pilot’s rebellion, reported PTI.
Govind Singh Dotasra, Harish Chaudhary and Raghu Sharma were dropped as ministers in view of the party’s “one man, one post” formula.
Sharma has now been made Congress’ in-charge of Gujarat and Chaudhary has been given a similar role in Punjab. Dotasra has been named as the Congress’ Rajasthan unit chief.
After the oath-taking ceremony, Gehlot told reporters that all communities, including scheduled tribes, scheduled castes, backward classes, have been given representation in the Cabinet.
He said that the ministers will be allotted portfolios keeping in mind preparations for the Assembly elections scheduled for 2023.
Earlier on Sunday, Pilot said that he was happy with the reshuffle, ANI reported. “The step taken by the party and leadership after discussions is sending a positive message across the state. We had raised this issue time and again.”
Meanwhile, the Bharatiya Janata Party criticised the Congress for including only three women ministers in the new Cabinet.
“In Rajasthan, where Congress is in power, only three out of 15 ministers, which means only 20%, are women,” the party’s Information Technology cell chief Amit Malviya tweeted. “But in Uttar Pradesh where Congress is the number four party, it is making false promises of giving 40% representation to women. This is the truth of the double politics of Congress and Gandhi family.”
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