Names of Rane and Pritam Munde doing the rounds for induction in union cabinet

Mumbai: BJP MP Narayan Rane, who is a strong critic of the Shiv Sena-led Maha Vikas Aghadi government in Maharashtra, on Monday rushed to New Delhi as he is likely to be inducted in the union cabinet during the ensuing reshuffle. Rane is expected to meet the BJP President JP Nadda.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah had recently visited Sindhudurg and inaugurated the medical college set up by Rane. Shah had showered praise on Rane who recently outpaced Shiv Sena, NCP and Congress in the recently held gram panchayat elections.

Rane, who is a former Shiv Sainik, migrated to Congress in 2005 citing strong differences with Uddhav Thackeray. Thereafter, he left Congress and floated Swabhimani Paksha in 2017. Rane, who was elected to the Rajya Sabha with the support of BJP in 2018, formally joined the party in October 2019 along with his two sons Nilesh and Nitesh.

Rane has been attacking the Maha Vikas Aghadi government on a number of issues including the handling of the pandemic and economy. He had repeatedly demanded the imposition of the President’s Rule in Maharashtra.

Moreover, BJP MP from Beed Dr Pritam Munde’s name is also doing the rounds in the party circle for her induction in the Union cabinet in the proposed reshuffle.

Munde, who is the daughter of former union minister and veteran BJP leader late Gopinath Munde, has been elected to the Lok Sabha from Beed constituency after the death of her father in the by-election in 2014 and later in 2019.

Munde’s induction will be important when the Maha Vikas Aghadi government is under attack after the Supreme Court recently scrapped the 27% political reservation for OBCs in the local bodies. BJP is at the forefront to take on the state government on this issue. Dr Pritam Munde with her elder sister and former minister Pankaja Munde has been quite active in taking up issues relating to OBCs and their development.