Narendra Modi Cabinet reshuffle today: Nine new ministers to take oath at 10:30 AM

New Delhi: The much-awaited reshuffle in the Modi cabinet will take place on Sunday at 10 AM in which at least nine faces from diverse backgrounds and rich administrative experiences are expected to join the government. 

The nine who are slated to be inducted today include RK Singh (Lok Sabha MP from Arrah, Bihar), Hardeep Singh Puri (ex-diplomat), Shiv Pratap Shukla (Rajya Sabha MP from Uttar Pradesh), Satyapal Singh (Lok Sabha MP from Baghpat), Alphons Kannanthanam (ex-bureaucrat), Ashwini Kumar Choubey (Lok Sabha MP from Buxar, Bihar), Anant Kumar Dattatreya Hegde (Lok Sabha MP from Uttara Kannada), Gajendra Singh Shekhawat (Lok Sabha MP from Jodhpur), andVirendra Kumar (Lok Sabha MP from Tikamgarh, Madhya Pradesh). If reports are to be believed, BJP leaders Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, Nirmala Sitharaman, Dharmendra Pradhan and  Piyush Goyal are likely to be elevated and they might get Cabinet rank in today's expansion. 

 

President Ram Nath Kovind will administer the oath of office and secrecy to all new ministers. "A process has been set in motion for the swearing-in ceremony at Rashtrapati Bhavan at around 10: 30 AM on Sunday," a top government official had said.

Swearing-in ceremony of new ministers of the Union government will take place at 10.30 am on Sunday, September 3, at Rashtrapati Bhavan — President of India (@rashtrapatibhvn) September 2, 2017

Several ministers - Rajiv Pratap Rudy, Sanjiv Kumar Balyan, Faggan Singh Kulaste and Mahendra Nath Pandey, Kalraj Mishra - had resigned ahead of the rejig. Reports say that the party had asked them to quit. 

As per the reports of PTI, Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari, seen as one of the more capable ministers, can be given more responsibility. Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu, who had taken moral responsibility for a string of train accidents and indicated his willingness to resign, may be moved to another ministry. Other incumbents, including Steel Minister Birender Singh, may be moved to other ministries. Power Minister Piyush Goyal, Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan and Telecom Minister Manoj Sinha are seen among "good performers" in the government, a party leader said, adding that some of them can be elevated.

The current strength of the council of ministers, including the prime minister, is 73 and the maximum number of ministers cannot go beyond 81.According to a constitutional amendment, the limit cannot exceed beyond 15 per cent of the total strength of the Lok Sabha which is 545. After assuming office in May 2014, Modi expanded his council of ministers twice -- first on November 9 in 2014 and then on July 05 in 2016. Reportedly, this might be Prime Minister Narendra Modi's third and probably last major recasting of his council of ministers before the next Lok Sabha polls in 2019. 

(With inputs from agencies)