Nitish blames media for blowing JD (U)'s non-inclusion in Cabinet expansion out of proportion

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Monday blamed the media for blowing Janata Dal (United)'s (JD(U)) non-inclusion in the reshuffle of the Union Cabinet, out of proportion.

Speaking at a press conference here, Nitish said, "During the reshuffle of the Cabinet, I was furious because the JD(U) was all over and was making headlines. My party's name has been dragged without any reason under all false charges. Also, the expansion of the Union Cabinet along with the NDA Government in Bihar is doing a good job. There was no need of it."

The Chief Minister categorically stated that his party was neither expecting nor planning to discuss the expansion of the Cabinet.

"We never thought of getting a share in the central Cabinet and were not looking forward to it," he added.

Yesterday, the third reshuffle of the Union Cabinet, by Prime Minister Narendra Modi saw the promotion of several ministers, and the induction of new faces.

There are 49 parties currently under the NDA umbrella, out of which none found a berth in the Cabinet expansion.

In two of the nine major changes in the Cabinet, Union Minister Piyush Goyal has been given the charge of Railway Ministry, while Nirmala Sitharaman has been assigned the charge of the Defence Ministry, making her only the second woman to hold the post since late Indira Gandhi.