All the allies of BJP, including Shiv Sena, JD(U) and AIADMK had high hopes of getting posts in the Modi cabinet, but only ministers with good report cards could make it there.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday expanded his cabinet by promoting the result oriented ministers while changing the positions of quite a few ministers. Many were taken by surprise at the new appointments. While on one hand, Modi Cabinet is seeing more of women ministers, with Nirmala Sitharaman becoming the first women Defence minister, apart from Indira Gandhi who had kept the Defense ministry under her during the emergency in 1975 and from 1980-82 and on the other hand it’s allied being disappointed by not getting any posts.
Bihar Chief Minister and JD(U) chief Nitish Kumar who had recently formed alliance with BJP after breaking the grand alliance with RJD-Congress in Bihar was hoping to get the return gift of position in Modi cabinet for joining hands with BJP but was disappointed.
Similarly, the newly merged AIADMK was also planning to form an alliance with BJP and had big dreams of entering the Cabinet, but it too was dumbfounded.
Shiv Sena along with JD(U) just a day ahead of the shuffle had reported that they had not received any formal invitation regarding the cabinet reshuffle, nor BJP had any interaction regarding the same with any of the parties.
However, it is being speculated that Prime Minister Narendra Modi may once again expand his cabinet ministers because there is still room for the addition of six more ministers, it is most likely that JD(U) and AIADMK may get representation during the next expansion.
In the Constitutional boundary of Lok Sabha, 15 per cent of the total strength of constituent parties of the ruling coalition is fixed, according to this, there is another extension is very much possible. At present, there are 75 ministers in the Modi Cabinet, of which 27 are Cabinet Ministers, 11 Minister of State with Independent Charge and 37 Minister of State. The constitutional limit permits a total of 81 ministers, which means 6 more can still be added.
According to the Political corridors, it is being expected that in the next Cabinet expansion, the recent partner of NDA, Nitish Kumar led JD(U) and the ruling party of Tamil Nadu AIADMK may get representation in the cabinet, making the numbers touch to 81.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi expanded his Cabinet on Sunday. This is the third expansion of the Modi Cabinet in the 3-year term, in which nine new faces were included. At present, four current ministers Dharmendra Pradhan, Piyush Goyal, Nirmala Sitharaman and Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi have been promoted to the Cabinet Minister, while many ministers have been expelled from the Modi cabinet.