Madhya Pradesh chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Thursday expanded his two-and-half-year-old ministry amid high drama over dropping two of his Cabinet colleagues for crossing 75 years of age.
Madhya Pradesh chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Thursday expanded his two-and-half-year-old ministry amid high drama over dropping two of his Cabinet colleagues for crossing 75 years of age.
State home minister Babulal Gaur, 86, and state PWD minister Sartaj Singh, 76, finally yielded to day-long persuasion by BJP national vice-president Binoy Sahasrabudhee and MP BJP chief Nand Kumar Chouhan to step down by heeding to the “75 years age cut-off” rule, enforced by the party leadership, to remain in the ministry.
Party sources said Mr Gaur even allegedly sla-mmed his doors at the two BJP leaders who visited his official residence to seek his re-signation on the ground that he was not eligible to continue in the ministry following the freshly announced rule.
“Mr Gaur confined himself to his room while the two BJP leaders waited outside. He had earlier refused to step down, offering the logic that he was physically fit to serve in the ministry. He even questioned the logic behind enforcing the cut-off age for becoming a member in the ministry, saying that in that case he should not have been given a party ticket to contest elections,” a BJP functionary who was witness to the drama told this newspaper.
Mr Singh also disapproved of the cut-off age rule and initially resisted the move to seek his resignation.
The drama, in fact, had led to uncertainty over the chief minister going ahead with his plan of expanding his ministry on Thursday. Later, however, both the ministers tendered their resignation.
“I have received resignations from two ministers and sent them to the governor,” Mr Chouhan told the reporters.
Later, Mr Chouhan expanded his ministry by inducting nine new members. Of the freshly inducted ministers, four were in the Cabinet rank and the rest were in the rank of ministers of state. With this, the strength of Shivraj ministry has gone up to 32.
