Kamal Nath approaches Sonia Gandhi after failing to meet Rahul

Bhopal: Madhya Pradesh chief minister Kamal Nath was believed to have sought permission from UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi to expand his Cabinet after he failed to get an audience with AICC president Rahul Gandhi to discuss the issue, Congress sources said on Sunday.

Mr Nath had visited New Delhi twice in the last fortnight and failed to meet Mr Gandhi on both the occasions.

He was scheduled to discuss with him on the proposed reshuffle in Congress in MP and the pending expansion of his ministry, sources said.

“After his failure to meet Mr Gandhi, he has written a letter to the UPA chairperson seeking her nod to go for his Cabinet  expansion”, a senior Congress leader disclosed to this newspaper requesting not to be
quoted. Mr Nath has sought approval from the party high command for his plan to drop six ministers in his Cabinet and induct an equal number of new faces in his ministry in the proposed expansion of his Cabinet.

He was planning to accommodate at least one MLA each from Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and Samajwadi Party (SP) and three Independents in his ministry to ensure stability of his government.

The Kamal Nath government which enjoyed a wafer-thin majority survived on outside support from two BSP MLAs, one SP legislator and four Independents.

One Independent has already been inducted in his cabinet. Ruling Congress has strength of 114 in 230-member MP assembly. The party was short of two MLAs to gain majority in the house.