Exercise for expansion of MP, Chhattisgarh ministries begins

Bhopal: Exercise for the expansion of Mohan Yadav ministry in Madhya Pradesh and Vishnu Deo Sai cabinet in Chhattisgarh has begun.

BJP’s Central leadership is set to start parleys with the chief ministers of Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh as well as the party leaderships in the two states on the matter in a day or two, sources said on Saturday.

“The Central leadership will take a decision on expansion of the state ministry”, Madhya Pradesh chief minister Mr Yadav said here on Saturday.

He however refused to elaborate further on the expansion of his ministry.

BJP national general secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya on Saturday indicated that a decision on expansion of Madhya Pradesh cabinet would be taken at a party meeting on Sunday.

“A decision on the matter will be taken at a BJP meeting on Sunday”, he said.

However, there was no clue if the senior leaders of the party who were fielded in the November 17 Assembly elections in Madhya Pradesh would be inducted in the Mohan Yadav ministry.

Of the seven Lok Sabha MPs, including three Union ministers, fielded in the recently held Assembly polls, five MPs including two Union ministers won the polls.

The former Union ministers who won the polls are Narendra Singh Tomar and Prallhad Patel.

Mr Tomar is tipped to be made speaker of the MP Assembly.

Former Union minister Fagan Singh Kulaste and Lok Sabha MP Ganesh Singh lost the polls.

BJP national general secretary Kailash Vijay Vargiya who was a prospective chief ministerial candidate along with Mr Patel won the polls from Indore-one Assembly constituency, considered to be the stronghold of Congress.

Mr Yadav along with two deputy chief ministers, Jagdish Devda and Rajesh Shukla, had taken oath here earlier this week.

In Chhattisgarh also, a decision on expansion of the Vishnu Deo Sai ministry may be taken in a day or two, sources said.

Sources said that Chhattisgarh chief minister Vishnu Deo Sai and deputy chief minister Arun Sao who is also state BJP president may visit Delhi in a day or two to start confabulations with the BJP leadership on the matter.

“The expansion of the state ministry will be taken at the right time”, Mr Sao said.

Mr Sai along with two deputy chief ministers, Mr Sao and Vijay Shukla, had taken oath in Raipur in Chhattisgarh earlier this week.