Other States - Punjab   

A herculean task for Mulayam

LUCKNOW, JUNE 28 . For several Ministers in Uttar Pradesh, It could well turn out to be their last Cabinet meeting scheduled this week, as Chief Minister Mulayam Singh Yadav has to downsize his ministry by July 7.

After completion of Rajya Sabha polls in U.P., the Chief Minister faces the herculian task of bringing down the number of his Ministers from 91 to 61 by dropping 30 ministers. Mr Yadav usually holds Cabinet meetings on Tuesday or Thursday.

The strength of the U.P. Assembly is 404 (one nominated) and according to the Constitution (91st amendment) Bill 2003, the Ministry will have a maximum strength of 61 only (15 per cent of the total members of the Assembly)

However, the actual number of Ministers to lose their job would be 24 as six of them have already resigned following their election to the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha.

A senior SP leader said the government had formulated a strategy to minimise the ministry. ``The Chief Minister is in constant touch with RLD's Ajit Singh to ensure a smooth downsizing,'' he added.

The sources said the Chief Minister had asked his ministers to submit their resignation letters to him soon so that he could have a free hand in the job. The dropped ministers could be accommodated in public sector undertakings as chairpersons with the status of ministers.

Out of 91 ministers in the Cabinet, 20 belong to allies, mainly the Rashtriya Lok Dal of Ajit Singh and other smaller parties and independents, while the remaining 71 are from SP. There are 28 Cabinet Ministers including the Chief Minister, 10 Ministers of State with independent charge and 53 Ministers of State.

The sources said the Chief Minister could ill-afford to displease his allies or SP supporters. In fact, though Mr Yadav had supported the Bill, it has not found favour with his State party leaders.

The pruning exercise is already causing a flutter among Ministers as many of them are uncertain about their future if they are removed. There is, however, no possibility of any defections in the SP due to the new anti-defection law, the sources added.

The State had been witnessing large-scale defections since Mr Kalyan Singh formed his government in 1997 with the support of defectors from the BSP and the Congress.

His successors Ram Prakash Gupta, Rajnath Singh, Mayawati and now Mr Yadav, followed his footsteps in `effecting' defections in other parties for the survival of their government. Several legislators had held ministerial posts in all these five ministries.

-- UNI

Printer friendly page  
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Other States

News: Front Page | National | Tamil Nadu | Andhra Pradesh | Karnataka | Kerala | New Delhi | Other States | International | Opinion | Business | Sport | Miscellaneous |
Advts: Classifieds | Employment | Updates: Breaking News |

Stories in this Section

• A herculean task for Mulayam
• Amarinder meddling in SGPC poll: Badal

Copyright © 2004, The Hindu. Republication or redissemination of the contents of this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of The Hindu