Cabinet expansion likely in U'khand

Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat's latest meeting with BJP president J P Nadda has fuelled speculations that a Cabinet expansion is likely in Uttarakhand.

Rawat had nearly a ninety-minute meeting with Nadda on Friday in New Delhi during which he discussed with him a range of issues related to the state, including a Cabinet expansion, which has been long overdue.

According to sources close to the chief minister, the party leadership has given its nod for a Cabinet expansion which is likely to take place by the end of this month.

There are three vacancies in the nine-member Uttarakhand Cabinet which can have a maximum of 12 ministers.

A10-member cabinet including the chief minister had been sworn in when the BJP had assumed power in the state in 2017.

While two Cabinet berths have been lying vacant since the outset, another one fell vacant last year after the death of Cabinet minister Prakash Pant, taking the number of vacancies to three.

The buzz about a Cabinet expansion first began in June 2019 when Pant passed away battling cancer.

The buzz, however, died down soon when state Urban Development Minister Madan Kaushik was given the additional charge of the Finance and Parliamentary Affairs, the portfolios held by Pant.

The buzz began again in January this year when the chief minister himself threw hints on the sidelines of a function here about a possible Cabinet expansion saying the need for it was being felt.

All the three vacancies are likely to be filled this time, the sources said, adding the portfolios of some ministers may also be changed.