Odisha CM asks all ministers to resign ahead of Cabinet reshuffle

Bhubaneswar, June 4

Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik on Saturday asked all ministers to resign from the council of ministers ahead of a reshuffle on June 5, a top official said. Governor Prof Ganeshi Lal, who is on a visit to Puri, has been informed about the programme, which will be held at the state secretariat, the Lok Seva Bhavan. “The new ministers will take oath at 11.45 am at a function on Sunday,” said a highly placed source in the Raj Bhavan.

Sources in the CM’s Office said that the ministers had started putting in their papers. This will be the first reshuffle in the three-year-old ministry. The process needs to be completed by Monday as the Governor is scheduled to go outside Odisha after two days. Patnaik is also scheduled to visit Rome and Dubai from June 20 and he wants to revamp the Cabinet before his departure, the sources said.

The reshuffle exercise began a day after the BJD won three Rajya Sabha seats and the by-poll in the Brajrajnagar constituency.