Punjab CM Captain Amarinder Singh. (File)Â
With Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh and Punjab Congress president Sunil Kumar Jakhar are all set to meet AICC president Rahul Gandhi in Delhi on Thursday to discuss a Cabinet expansion in the state. Amarinder and Jakhar will meet Rahul Gandhi at 3:30 pm on Thursday, in the presence of general secretary in-charge Asha Kumari and AICC secretary Harish Choudhary. Sources said that before meeting Rahul, the four will discuss the probables at a dinner meeting in Delhi later on Wednesday.
According to sources, Amarinder plans to induct seven ministers as of now and leave two berths vacant. As per rules, Punjab, with 117-member Assembly, can have 18 ministers including the Chief Minister.
It is learnt that Amarinder’s list includes one of his closest aides, Guru Har Sahai MLA Rana Gurmit Singh Sodhi, Dera Baba Nanak MLA Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa, Raja Sansi MLA Sukhbinder Singh Sarkaria, Amritsar West MLA, OP Soni, Sangrur MLA Vijay Inder Singla, Rampura Phul MLA Gurpreet Singh Kangar, MLAs from Ludhiana Bharat Bhushan Ashu and Surinder Dawar. In the probables list, Randhawa, Sarkaria and Soni are all from Majha region. From Ludhiana, both Dawar and Ashu would be discussed. Ashu is considered close to Rahul, including the MLA from Fatehgarh Sahib Kuljit Singh
Dr Raj Kumar Verka, an MLA from Amritsar, who is a prominent Valmiki leader is in the reckoning. While the Cabinet already has three Dalit ministers including Sadhu Singh Dharamsot, Charanjit Singh Channi and Aruna Choudhary, all three are Ravidassias. The party may feel the need to induct a Valmiki leader also.
Pargat Singh, an MLA from Jalandhar, and a close aide of Local Bodies Minister Navjot Singh Sidhu, whom Sidhu had called the prospective Sports Minister, may come up for discussion. Sources said, Amarinder wanted to set up Sports Authority of Punjab and appoint him the chairman of the SAP instead of inducting him in the Cabinet.
Sources said if party leaders reach a consensus on Thursday, the oath taking ceremony would be organised within a day or two. While Amarinder reached Delhi in the Punjab government chopper, Jakhar took a flight from Chandigarh to the national Capital.