UP's ex-health minister, leader who supervised Kashi Vishwanath corridor, among bigwigs dropped from Yogi Adityanath's cabinet

The new Yogi Adityanath cabinet made space for at least 31 fresh faces while dropping 24 ministers, including heavyweights, from the first term of his government in Uttar Pradesh.

Overall, the team Adityanath 2.0 sworn in on March 25 includes two deputy chief ministers, 18 cabinet ministers, 14 ministers of state (independent charge) and 20 ministers of state, apart from the chief minister. Among the 52 ministers, five are women.

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Eleven former ministers, who have been dropped, had lost the assembly elections. But the prominent leaders, who won the elections and represent different castes and communities, have been dropped either for lacking connect with people or due to their poor performance as ministers, according to reports.

Keshav Prasad Maurya, who lost the assembly polls, has, however, been re-inducted as deputy chief minister in the Adityanath-led cabinet. Political analysts said his continuation as UP's deputy CM is due to his hold over the backward classes. By retaining him in the cabinet, the party doesn’t want to annoy the OBC votes ahead of 2024 Lok Sabha polls.

The Bharatiya Janata Party created history in recently held assembly polls when it, along with allies, won a record mandate by bagging 274 of the 403 assembly seats of the state, becoming the first party in three decades to get a second term after completing a five-year tenure.

The portfolios to new ministers are yet to be distributed.

Bigwigs who have been dropped this time include former deputy chief minister Dinesh Sharma, known as Brahmin face of the party in the state. Sharma did not contest the election and has been replaced by another Brahmin leader Brajesh Pathak as deputy chief minister. Pathak won from the Lucknow Cantonment seat in recently-conducted polls.

“I will continue to work for the party and strengthen it. As a party worker, I will work to ensure that the BJP emerges victorious in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections,” Sharma was quoted as saying by news agency PTI on March 25. Sharma may be elevated as Legislative Council chairman, sources said.

Also read | UP Election Results 2022 | Another landslide for BJP, but what does the fine print say?

Another bigwig who has not been given a berth this time is Jai Pratap Singh, the medical and health minister in the previous Adityanath government that was faced with criticism over poor COVID-19 management during the second wave of the pandemic. The government had, however, claimed that its pandemic management was best in the country. Singh is an eight-term MLA from Bansi in Siddharthnagar district of the state.

Another significant omission this time is Neelkanth Tiwari, who was re-elected from the Varanasi South seat in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Lok Sabha constituency. The much-publicised Kashi Vishwanath Dham corridor falls in Tiwari’s constituency and was constructed under his supervision. Sources said there was strong anti-incumbency against Tiwari, a Brahmin, in his constituency and the party had to work hard to make him win the seat. Tiwari was minister of state (independent charge) law and justice, information, sports and youth welfare in the previous government.

Ramapati Shastri, the social welfare minister in the previous cabinet, who won from Mankapur failed to make it to the list. Shastri, a senior leader of the party, has been a minister in the BJP government of Rajnath Singh and Kalyan Singh. Uttar Pradesh Governor Anandiben Patel has appointed him pro-tem Speaker for the new Assembly.

Satish Mahana, the eight-term MLA and the industry development minister in the previous cabinet, has also been dropped. This despite the government claiming that UP drew a huge investment in his leadership in the past five years. Mahana may become the Speaker of UP assembly.

Other leaders who have been dropped include Shrikant Sharma, the Mathura MLA who has been the spokesperson of the government in the previous term. Sidharth Nath Singh, who was minister of MSME, khadi and export in the previous government, has been dropped too. Singh won from Allahabad West for the second consecutive term. The party has also dropped Ashutosh Tandon “Gopal” who was a cabinet minister for urban development in the previous government. Ashutosh is son of late senior leader Lalji Tandon.

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BJP government’s lone Muslim minister in the previous cabinet,  Mohsin Raza, has been dropped while Mahendra Singh, former Jal Shakti minister, could also not get ministerial berth this time. Singh is considered close to Defence Minister Rajnath Singh.