Vibha Sharma
Tribune News Service
New Delhi, June 6
BJP national vice-president and Uttar Pradesh in-charge Radha Mohan Singh today met Governor Anandiben Patel in Lucknow, again sparking off speculations of a reshuffle of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s Cabinet. The senior BJP leader, however, described his meeting with Patel as a “courtesy call”.
PM aide’s entry into cabinet imminent?
- On the possibility of a reshuffle, Radha Mohan Singh says there are vacant posts in Cabinet, and CM will take a call on the issue
- Coming on heels of RSS meetings in Delhi, the visit triggers talk of PM aide AK Sharma’s entry into Cabinet
When asked about the possibility of a reshuffle, Singh told mediapersons that there were vacant posts in the Cabinet which would be filled by the Chief Minister at the right time. “I think the CM will take a call on the issue,” he added.
Singh said after becoming the party in-charge of UP, he had not met the Governor. “When she was the CM (of Gujarat), I was the agriculture minister (in the Centre). I met her today as courtesy demanded so, especially since she is the Governor of the state of which I am the (BJP) in-charge. It was a personal meeting,” Singh said.
Backing the embattled CM, Singh said the UP Government and the party’s organisation were going strong. “The strongest organisation and most popular government are working in UP,” Singh said. However, observers are reading much into the meeting given the hectic political developments in the state over the past few days, especially after accusations of “mismanagement” against Adityanath during the second wave of coronavirus.
It also follows a string of meetings by the BJP’s ideological fountainhead, the RSS, in the Capital. Though Sangh functionaries described them as preparations for an upcoming annual meeting, sources say discussions were held over the Covid situation in poll-bound states, including UP, where elections are due in March 2022.
Also on the agenda was resolving the political crisis created due to “differences” between Adityanath and PM Narendra Modi over former Gujarat-cadre IAS officer Arvind Kumar Sharma. The CM is believed to have refused to accommodate Sharma in any top post in the state, though he was willing to let him have a minister of state post.
Observers also say that any meeting with Anandiben Patel cannot be a routine one. “She is the Governor, has been a CM, and understands the situation well,” they say.
It remains to be seen whether Sharma will be accommodated in the Cabinet but before visiting the Raj Bhavan, Singh also met state BJP chief Swatantra Dev Singh and Jal Shakti Minister Mahendra Singh. Earlier, Singh and BJP general secretary (organisation) BL Santhosh met several state leaders in Lucknow and backed Adityanath, describing him as “hardworking and efficient” to dispel speculations surrounding his future.
Before leaving for Lucknow, Singh had held a meeting yesterday with party chief JP Nadda.