Uttar Pradesh gets 8 berths, still asks for more

Lucknow: In Narendra Modi’s council of ministers, Uttar Pradesh, which gave 71 parliamentary seats to BJP in the Lok Sabha elections, has got the maximum share. Four Cabinet and four MoS from Uttar Pradesh were inducted in Mr Modi’s Cabinet.

The induction of eight MPs from Uttar Pradesh into the Union Cabinet may seem like a lion’s share for a state that has given 71 members to the BJP but the omission of some ‘deserving’persons has started raising questions on the choices.

Prime minister Narendra Modi has included Rajnath Singh, Kalraj Misra, Maneka Gandhi and Uma Bharti as cabinet ministers while Gen. (retd.) V.K. Singh and Santosh Gangwar have been made ministers of state with independent charge.

The two ministers of state from Uttar Pradesh are Manoj Sinha and Sanjeev Kumar Baliyan. The omissions are apparently more glaring than the inclusions. The biggest one being that of Murli Manohar Joshi whose role and status in the new government remains a mystery.

Another omission is that of senior party leader Mukhatr Abbas Naqvi who has apparently been replaced by Najma Heptullah – the lone Muslim in the Cabinet.