Modi expands Cabinet with four new faces

The four who joined the Cabinet on Saturday are Kanu Bhalala,MLA from Visavdar,Vasuben Trivedi,MLA from Jamnagar,Praful Patel,MLA from Himmatnagar and Pradeepsinh Jadeja,MLA from Asarwa in Ahmedabad,all of them first-time ministers. With their induction,Saurashtra,north Gujarat and Ahmedabad regions have been represented in the Cabinet,scoring over central and south.

Modi,who has always kept his Cabinet lean,has opted for expansion nearly a month ahead of polls for local bodies and it is being seen as a tool to mobilise party cadres. With the induction of two Patels,Kanu Bhalala and Praful Patel,the CM has tried to keep in good humour the politically and financially strong Patels,who form the single largest block of MLAs.

Similarly,by inducting Vasuben Trivedi,Modi has also tried to satisfy the Brahmin lobby,who on the eve of the December 2007 Assembly polls had complained of isolation from the party,with only health minister Jaynarayan Vyas as their representative.

By brining in Pradeepsinh Jadeja,Modi has sent a positive signal to the Kshatriya community,which so far had only one minister,Kiritsinh Rana.

The strength of Modi’s Cabinet now stands at 21,which had come down to 17 following the resignations of Shah and Kodnani.

One person that Modi did not oblige is Parsottam Solanki,a minister of state belonging to powerful Koli community who aspired for a Cabinet rank. The minister faces several criminal cases.

The swearing-in ceremony at the Raj Bhavan in Gandhinagar was a low-key affair but was attended by all the ministers and prominent bureaucrats.

First-timers clear loyalty test

Praful Patel,MoS for home,prohibition and jails
In a break from the past,it is now a north Gujarat face who takes over the reins of home department. The earlier three who held the portfolio were Ahmedabad faces — Haren Pandya who was killed,Gordhan Zadafia who left BJP to start his own outfit and Amit Shah who quit after his arrest in the Sohrabuddin encounter case. Patel is the first-time MLA from Himmatnagar. Holding a diploma in civil engineering and involved in construction activities,53-year-old Patel is said to be a Modi loyalist and since January 2009,he has been the president of the Sabarkantha district BJP. He is said to have played a key role in wresting the Sabarkantha Lok Sabha seat from Congress.

Pradeepsinh Jadeja,MoS,law,justice and parliamentary affairs
The party whip in the Assembly who started off as a poll booth manager has come a long way. Former Gujarat BJP youth wing president and former chairman of Gujarat Narmada Valley Fertiliser Company (GVFC),Jadeja is a science graduate with chemistry as one of the subjects and got elected to the state Assembly from Asarwa in Ahmedabad in 2002 and 2007. Once a Keshubhai Patel loyalist,he later switched over to Modi. Though Gulberg Society and Naroda Patiya,the sites of worst communal riots in 2002,fall in his constituency,his name never cropped up in connection with the riots,unlike his party colleagues from the area like former minister Maya Kodnani.
Jadeja was appointed as party’s chief whip in the Assembly after 2007 polls. He was elected to Ahmedabad Municipal corporation in 1995 and worked as chairman of AMC’s health and hospital committees. He is also a former member of Gujarat University Syndicate.

Vasuben Trivedi,MoS,women and child development,higher and technical education
The second woman face in Modi’s Cabinet,she takes over the portfolios vacated by Dr Maya Kodnani after her resignation.
Born in Savli taluka of Vadodara district in February 1950,Vasuben Trivedi,an MA and LLB,teaches at Vidyarthi Vidya Bhavan’s A K doshi Mahiola College at Jamnagar. She got elected to the state Assembly in 2002 and 2007. She was recently appointed as vice-president of BJP’s central executive committee. She has also served as chairperson of the Gujarat State Textbook Committee and is a member of academic bodies of several universities.

Kanubhai Bhalala,MoS,agriculture and water resources
Hailing from the Patel community,he won twice,in 2002 and 2007 Assembly polls,from Visavdar constituency,earlier represented by former CM and party stalwart Keshubhai Patel. He is considered to be strong Modi loyalist in the party. He has been president of the Junagadh district BJP for nine years.

Leader of Oppn skips swearing-in,says not invited by CM

Leader of Opposition in the state Assembly Shaktsinh Gohil kept away from the swearing-in ceremony,instead releasing a statement saying he was not personally invited by Chief Minister Narendra Modi. However,the state government officials said an invitation card was sent to his office on Friday. Gohil’s office confirmed the invitation card was received. But Gohil was away in Delhi on Saturday and did not attend calls.