Even with 66 ministers Narendra Modi government leaner than UPA and past NDA; Shiv Sena threatens to snap ties with BJP

Former Goa Chief Minister and an IIT-M alumnus Manohar Parrikar, a former Shiv Sainik and Power minister in Vajpayee government Suresh Prabhu, BJP general secretary JP Nadda and Jat leader from Haryana CH Birender Singh were sworn in as the Cabinet Ministers at the Rashtrapati Bhawan by President Pranab Mukherjee on Sunday.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi inducted four cabinet ministers, three Ministers of State (Independent Charge) and 14 Ministers of State in his first cabinet expansion on Sunday since assuming power in May this year.

Bandaru Dattatreya, Rajiv Pratap Rudy and Mahesh Sharma took oath as Ministers of State (Independent Charge). 

Fourteen Ministers of State including Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, Ram Kripal Yadav, Haribhai Parthibhai Chaudhary, Sanwar Lal Jat and Mohanbhai Kalyanjibhai Kundariya, Giriraj Singh, Hansraj Ahir, Ram Shankar Katheria, YS Chowdary, Jayant Sinha, Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore, Babul Supriyo, Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti and Vijay Sampla were sworn-in as Ministers of State.

The strength of the Union Council of Ministers goes up from 45 to 66. Of this, 27 including the Prime Minister are of Cabinet rank, 13 Ministers of State with Independent Charge and 26 Ministers of State. But it is still leaner than erstwhile UPA and NDA government

The swearing-in ceremony was attended among others by Vice President Hamid Ansari, Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan, Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairperson P J Kurien, Narendra Modi and his Cabinet colleagues, BJP patriarch LK Advani and the Chief Ministers of BJP-ruled states Vasundhara Raje, Raman Singh, Manohar Lal Khattar and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu of TDP. None from Congress was present in the ceremony.

However, Shiv Sena boycotted the expansion of Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led Union Council of Ministers. According to reports, the Shiv Sena was reportedly unhappy over its leader Anil Desai being offered the rank of Minister of State instead of a full Cabinet rank post.

Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray has since asked Desai to return to Mumbai from the national capital. The Shiv Sena leadership also reportedly expressed its objection to Suresh Prabhu being inducted in the Union Cabinet as part of BJP's quota as Cabinet Minister. Shiv Sena has issued an ultimatum that they wil sit in opposition in Maharashtra if BJP decides to take support in Maharashtra. Uddhav Thakeray has made it clear in a press conference on Sunday evening that relationship in Maharashtra will have its effect on the centre. 

19:50 IST Sunday, 9 November 2014

Narendra Modi Cabinet still leaner than UPA and previous

The big expansion of his Council of Ministers by Prime Minister Narendra Modi today has taken the number of ministers to 66 but it is still leaner than those headed by Manmohan Singh and Atal Bihari Vajpayee before him.

The strength of Singh's UPA ministry stood at 78 after its final reshuffle in October 2012 while the previous NDA government led by Vajpayee started with a lean 56-member ministry but was expanded up to nearly 88 ministers. The Modi ministry has now 27 members, including the Prime Minister, of Cabinet rank, 13 Ministers of State with Independent Charge and and 26 Ministers of State.
Singh's ministry had 33 ministers of Cabinet rank, 12 MoS with Independent Charge and 33 others as MoS. Read More 

19:30 IST Sunday, 9 November 2014

Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti: Preacher who helped BJP make inroads in Uttar Pradesh

Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti, who was sworn in as an MoS in the Narendra Modi government, is known as a religious preacher who helped BJP make inroads among the Dalit and backward classes in the politically-crucial state of Uttar Pradesh. Read More 

19:10 IST Sunday, 9 November 2014

Suresh Prabhu joins BJP before being sworn in as cabinet minister

Former Shiv Sena leader Suresh Prabhu today formally joined the BJP before being sworn in as Cabinet Minister in the first expansion of the Narendra Modi government. Prabhu, who was Power Minister in the Atal Behari Vajpayee-led previous NDA government, received the party's primary membership in the morning and was welcomed by senior party leaders. Read More

18:50 IST Sunday, 9 November 2014

Congress stays away from swearing-in ceremony

Congress on Sunday kept away from the oath-taking ceremony of 21 new ministers in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Council of Ministers in New Delhi.

"Both Sonia Gandhi and Manmohan Singh were invited to the ceremony," Power Minister Piyush Goyal said after the swearing-in ceremony here. Asked if there was any communication from the Congress on whether they will attend the ceremony or not, Goyal did not give any details. Read More 

16:53 IST Sunday, 9 November 2014

Controversial leader Giriraj Singh gets place in Narendra Modi government

Giriraj Singh, who is known for his fiery and at times controversial statements, has found a berth in the Narendra Modi ministry as a representative of Bhumihars, who backed the party in Bihar and felt let down due to lack of representation in the Council of Ministers. The 62-year-old BJP MP from Nawada had caused some embarassment to the party during the campaign for Lok Sabha polls when he suggested that Muslims unhappy with Modi should go to Pakistan, forcing the party's prime ministerial candidate to issue a rebuke. But Singh, a first time MP, is also one of the early Modi loyalists in the party and often took on the then Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar over his antipathy towards Modi despite being a member of Kumar's cabinet. Read more

16:51 IST Sunday, 9 November 2014

Narendra Modi's cabinet expansion: JP Nadda, a master strategist gets his reward

A master-strategist and a trusted lieutenant of Prime Minister Narendra Modi as well as BJP President Amit Shah, Jagat Prakash Nadda's entry into the Government is a vindication of his efficiency and dependability who prefers to work behind the scenes. A prominent student leader during his college days, mild-mannered Nadda, 53, known as a tough task master, was a strong contender for the post of BJP President but extended full support to Shah after losing out on the race earlier this year. Nadda is seen as a member of the most powerful troika along with Modi and Shah. He is known to be part of all major decision making processes in the party and is likely to be the bridge between the party and the government. Read more

16:49 IST Sunday, 9 November 2014

Cabinet expansion: Pilot-cum-politician Rajiv Pratap Rudy returns to government

A pilot-cum-politician, Rajiv Pratap Rudy returns to the Union Council of Ministers riding on BJP's success in the assembly polls in Maharastra after the articulate leader played a key role in the party's victory in the politically crucial state. The induction of Rudy, who had humbled RJD chief Lalu Prasad's wife Rabri Devi in the recent Lok sabha elections in Bihar's Saran constituency, also signals BJP's focus on Bihar ahead of next year's assembly polls. Read more

16:38 IST Sunday, 9 November 2014

Jayant Sinha- From IIT to Harvard to Narendra Modi's ministry

He went to IIT Delhi and came out with flying colours, and from there he went to the Harvard Business school to enter the corporate world. Today, Jayant Sinha, son of BJP veteran and former Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha, is a member of the Narendra Modi's Council of Ministers. 51-year-old Jayant, an investment fund manager and management consultant so far, was elected to the Lok Sabha in May this year from Hazaribagh in Jharkhand, a seat once represented by Sinha senior. He has been associated with the corporate world for nearly 25 years before he entered Parliament as a first-time MP. Since becoming an MP, Jayant has also been a member of three parliamentary committees - Public Accounts Committee, Standing Committee on Finance and Committee on Subordinate Legislation. Read more

16:32 IST Sunday, 9 November 2014

Olympic medalist first time MP Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore joins cabinet

Having excelled in shooting ranges, ace marksman Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore has now hit target in the political arena as well, getting a berth in the Narendra Modi government on Sunday as a Minister of State in his maiden stint as an MP. 43-year-old Rathore, who rose to fame when he won a silver medal in the 2004 Olympics in Athens finishing second in the double trap shooting event, made a successful transition to politics, winning the Lok Sabha polls from Jaipur Rural constituency earlier this year. Read more

16:28 IST Sunday, 9 November 2014

Women representation in Narendra Modi ministry goes upto 8

First time Uttar Pradesh MP Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti is the lone woman face in the expansion of the Union Cabinet which took the total representation of the fairer sex to eight on Sunday. 47-year-old Jyoti is a religious preacher and won the Lok Sabha polls from Fatehpur constituency. She has been inducted as Minister of State. Seven women ministers including six with Cabinet rank were included in the Council of Ministers in May. Read more

16:16 IST Sunday, 9 November 2014

A medical doctor to politics, Mahesh Sharma bags ministerial berth

From being a medical practitioner to winning the Lok Sabha elections this year from Gautam Budh Nagar in UP, it has been a long journey for Mahesh Sharma who took oath today as Ministers of State (Independent Charge) in the Narendra Modi government. 55-year-old Sharma had snatched the Gautam Budh Nagar Lok Sabha seat from the Samajwadi Party this year. A doctor by profession, he holds an MBBS degree and is also the Chairman and Managing Director of Kailash Healthcare Limited which is situated in Noida. Read more

16:10 IST Sunday, 9 November 2014

Banker-politician Suresh Prabhu returns to the Union Cabinet

A qualified Chartered Accountant, Shiv Sena leader Suresh Prabhu returns to the Union Cabinet after having served in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government during when he won kudos for imparting a new dynamism to the functioning of the Power Ministry. That the 61-year-old banker-politician from coastal Konkan was in good books of the Narendra Modi regime became evident after he was appointed head of a government panel on power revamp called Advisory Group for Integrated Development of Power, Coal and Renewable Energy. Prabhu was also appointed as Modi's 'sherpa' to assist the Prime Minister at the upcoming G20 summit in Brisbane. Read more

15:54 IST Sunday, 9 November 2014

Cabinet expansion: Vijay Sampla, once a plumber becomes a minister

Vijay Sampla, who was once a plumber, scaled new heights on Sunday with his induction in the Narendra Modi ministry that is apparently aimed at 2017 Assembly polls in Punjab where the BJP hopes to play the Dalit card to woo the Scheduled Caste community. After SAD leader Harsimrat Kaur Badal, 53-year-old Sampla, a prominent Dalit leader and a first-time MP, is the second Lok Sabha MP from Punjab to become a Union Minister. Sampla won the recent Lok Sabha elections from the reserved Hoshiarpur seat. Read more

15:16 IST Sunday, 9 November 2014

No new Shiv Sena minister in Union Cabinet, Uddhav Thackeray may pull out of Narendra Modi government

The simmering tension between Shiv Sena and BJP came to a boil on Sunday as Sena MP Anil Desai failed to take oath as Union Minister amid talk that Uddhav Thackeray will pull the party out of the government at the Centre and play Opposition in Maharashtra. Sena sources said that the party chief has convened a meeting in Mumbai this evening which could decide to play the role of opposition in Maharashtra and that he could direct Anant Geete, party's lone representative in the Narendra Modi Cabinet, to resign. Read more

14:59 IST Sunday, 9 November 2014

Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, Muslim face of BJP, stages a comeback

Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, a prominent Muslim face of the BJP, stages a comeback to the Union Council of Ministers, 15 years after his stint as MoS Information and Broadcasting in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government. A two-time Rajya Sabha member, Naqvi, 57, is one of the Vice-Presidents of the BJP and has been a spokesperson of the party for a long time. Read more

14:34 IST Sunday, 9 November 2014

Manohar Parrikar, the technocrat-turned politician with administration skills​

From a RSS pracharak to a Union Minister, technocrat-turned politician Manohar Gopalkrishna Parrikar, a three-time Goa Chief Minister, is known for his administrative acumen and clean image to leave an indelible mark on the politics of the tiny state. A Mumbai IIT graduate in metallurgical engineering and among the first members of BJP in Goa, 59-year-old Parrikar has been instrumental in raising the profile of his party from its just four members in state assembly in 1994 to its present status as a ruling party with the highest number of seats in the state assembly. Read more

14:21 IST Sunday, 9 November 2014

Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, Ram Kripal Yadav, Haribhai Parthibhai Chaudhary, Sanwar Lal Jat and Mohanbhai Kalyanjibhai Kundariya, Giriraj Singh, Hansraj Ahir, Ram Shankar Katheria, YS Chowdary, Jayant Sinha, Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore, Babul Supriyo, Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti and Vijay Sampla were sworn-in as Ministers of State.

13:47 IST Sunday, 9 November 2014

Bandaru Dattatreya, Rajiv Pratap Rudy and Mahesh Sharma took oath as Ministers of State (Independent Charge)

Manohar Parrikar, Suresh Prabhu, JP Nadda, CH Birender Singh sworn in as Cabinet Minister.

13:16 IST Sunday, 9 November 2014

Manohar Parrikar, Suresh Prabhu, Virender Singh and JP Nadda likely to be sworn in as Cabinet Ministers.

13:14 IST Sunday, 9 November 2014

PM Narendra Modi is a one man Cabinet, doesn't need expansion, says Congress leader Digvijay Singh

Mocking the Bharatiya Janata Party-led NDA regime, Congress leader Digvijay Singh on Sunday said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi is a one man Cabinet and, therefore, he does not require a Cabinet expansion. "Why so much excitement about Cabinet expansion? Modi doesn't require a Cabinet. His is a one man cabinet! Ask Rajnath Ji and Gadkari Ji!," Digvijay tweeted. Read more

12:50 IST Sunday, 9 November 2014

Will continue to guide Goa government in policy decisions, says Manohar Parrikar

Former Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar has said he has been asked by the BJP high command to guide the Laxmikant Parsekar-led state government, even after he takes over a bigger role at the Centre. "I will always be guiding Goa government. I may not interfere with the state government, but I will be helping it in the policy decisions. The party high command has asked me to take that role," Parrikar told PTI, before leaving for Delhi to be inducted today into the Union Cabinet where he is tipped to get the Defence portfolio. Parrikar, the BJP's popular face in the state, said he has been asked by the party to help the team in Goa. Read more

12:40 IST Sunday, 9 November 2014

Shiv Sena leader Anil Desai likely to be inducted in Union Cabinet

Signalling a thaw in troubled relations between BJP and Shiv Sena, Sena MP Anil Desai is likely to be inducted in the Union Council of Ministers on Sunday, Sena sources said. Desai has reached Delhi from Mumbai and will be sworn in as a minister in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government, the sources said. Read more

12:19 IST Sunday, 9 November 2014

Cabinet expansion: Shiv Sena leader Anil Desai leaves for Delhi

Shiv Sena leader Anil Desai on Sunday left for Delhi ahead of the Union Cabinet expansion this afternoon, but there is no word yet on the contentious issue of the party's participation in the Maharashtra BJP government. State Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis also left for the national capital this morning to attend the swearing-in and it is expected that parleys between the two parties may be held in Delhi. Read more

12:09 IST Sunday, 9 November 2014

Olympian shooter-turned-politician Rajyavardhan Rathore said:  "I am proud that he (Modi) has selected me. It is a great honour. With it comes greater responsibility. I have come here for responsibility."

11:55 IST Sunday, 9 November 2014

Would be privileged to serve nation as MoS, says Rajiv Pratap Rudy

Hours before the expansion of Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led Union Council of Ministers is to take place, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) general secretary Rajiv Pratap Rudy said on Sunday that he would be privileged to be a part of the Cabinet and serve the nation as a Minister of State (MoS) with independent charge. "It is a privilege to be a part of PM Modi's cabinet as MoS (Independent Charge) to serve the nation," Rudy tweeted. Read more