New Delhi, January 28
A reshuffle of the Union Council of Ministers, with some inductions and exclusions, is going to take place tomorrow evening in which former Gujarat Chief Minister Keshubhai Patel may be inducted.
Though the Capital is reverberating with speculations about impending Cabinet changes, a final decision would be taken tomorrow when Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee, Deputy Prime Minister L.K. Advani, BJP President M. Venkaiah Naidu, Union Finance Minister Jaswant Singh and possibly Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pramod Mahajan would meet at 7 Race Course Road at 10 in the morning. The Cabinet
expansion-cum-reshuffle would take place tomorrow evening, Rashtrapati Bhavan sources said.
Meanwhile, Coal Minister Uma Bharti has tendered her resignation as minister, paving the way for Mr Naidu to use her services for the party in Madhya Pradesh to take on state Chief Minister Digvijay Singh.
At the same time, Ms Bharti’s resignation has left no excuse for Minister of State for Small-Scale Industries and Personnel and Rajasthan BJP president Vasundhara Raje and Minister of State Raman Singh to hold dual posts.
As BJP General Secretary and former Law Minister Arun Jaitley is being hotly tipped to go back to the government, Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pramod Mahajan has reportedly offered to work for the party.
A strong rumour is doing the rounds that Information and Broadcasting
Minister Sushma Swaraj may be drafted for the party work, but sources said it was unlikely.
While former Health Minister C.P. Thakur is being brought back to the Council of Ministers, there is a possibility that Union Health Minister Shatrughan Sinha may be shifted to the Ministry of Tourism.
The sources said though both Mr Vajpayee as well as Mr Advani were keen on having party General Secretary Arun Jaitley back in the government as the Minister of Law and Justice, yet Mr Naidu had pleaded with the two top party leaders to spare Mr Jaitley for the party work till the Himachal elections.
Mr Advani is also said to be toying with the idea of allowing Mr Jaitley to have both posts till the Himachal elections after which he could demit the party position but a final decision would be taken by Mr Vajpayee.
Earlier, another General Secretary Rajnath Singh was also being tipped to move to the government, but developments in Uttar Pradesh with regard to former UP Cabinet Minister Raja Bhaiyya, who has been arrested under POTA, applied brakes on the former UP Chief Minister’s movement, the sources said.
However, only one General Secretary would move to the government in view of the elections in many states this year.
Former BJP President and Law Minister K Jana Krishnamurthi is likely to be shifted from his present post, the sources said.
While Mr Advani is keen on retaining Mr Krishnamurthi in the Union Council of Ministers, the latter is said to be "perturbed" with the move. Mr Krishnamurthi is understood to have conveyed that he would rather prefer to retire from active politics rather than hold any other portfolio, the sources said.
The BJP high command,
including Mr Vajpaye and Mr Advani, decided to shift Mr Krishnamurthi as the former party President is too assertive and takes decisions without consulting anyone.
Mr Krishnamurthi could not handle the Justice Venkatswami issue, which brought quite a discomfort to the party and the government.
However, Mr Advani is trying to persuade Mr Krishnamurthi to stay in the government and accept another portfolio. If Mr Krishnamurthi agrees, then he may be given the Ministry of Culture.
Tourism and Culture Minister Jagmohan is being shifted from his present assignment to the Ministry of North East Region which is being held by Mr Arun Shourie.
There are also some indications that Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Sushma Swaraj may be shifted to the Ministry of Health and the Information and Broadcasting Ministry may be clubbed with the Information Technology and may go to Mr Mahajan.
Meanwhile, it is learnt that Defence Minister George Fernandes is strongly pitching for the return of Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee to the Union Cabinet.
