Himanta Biswa Sarma
Just 18 months before the Assam assembly elections, Himanta Biswa Sarma began expanding the size of her cabinet. The new minister will be sworn in at Raj Bhavan on December 7. A total of four new ministers will be appointed by the government. Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma announced the names himself. Himanta posted on social media that MLAs Prasanta Phukan, Kaushik Rai, Krishnandu Paul and Rupesh Goala will be sworn in as ministers on December 7.
Himanta’s cabinet has a total of 14 ministers, including the chief minister. Assam has a total of 126 assembly seats and a total of 19 ministers can be elected.
Why do these 4 MLAs bear this responsibility?
1. Prasanta Phukan- Dibrugarh MLA Prasanta Phukan is a very senior leader. Pukan has won consecutive elections since 2006. In the recently held Lok Sabha elections, the BJP won resoundingly in all the Lok Sabha seats in Dibrugarh. To maintain this, Prasanta was given a seat in the cabinet.
2.Kaushik Rai- It has been decided to include Kaushik Rai, MP from Lakhipur in Chachar district, in the cabinet. Kaushik Rai was appointed minister, replacing Parimal Shuklavaidya. Shuklavaidya was elected from Silchar seat in the Lok Sabha elections.
3. Krishnandu Paul- It has also been decided to include MLA Krishnendu Paul from Patharkandi constituency in Shribhoomi district in the cabinet. Paul’s seat falls under Karimganj Lok Sabha, the Lok Sabha election that the BJP had won. Here, the party holds a substantial lead in Paul’s seat. Karimganj is a Muslim-dominated Lok Sabha seat.
4. Rupesh Mengla- Himanta has also decided to include Rupesh Goala, MLA from Doomduma in Tinsukia district, in the cabinet. Gora entered the House of Representatives after winning for the first time in 2021. Gora entered politics from the tea workers’ organization. Himant Soren was targeted by the opposition against tea workers during the Jharkhand elections.
When will Himanta’s cabinet be expanded?
After the formation of the government in 2021, Himanta Biswa Sarma carried out the first cabinet expansion in 2022. In this expansion, two provincial councilors were included in the cabinet.
There have been discussions about expansion ever since a minister was elected to the Lok Sabha in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
