Madhya Pradesh CM expands cabinet, inducts 3 new members months ahead of Assembly polls

Bhopal, August 26

Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Saturday expanded his cabinet by inducting three BJP MLAs as ministers months ahead of the state assembly polls to be held by the end of the year.

With this, there are now 34 members in the Chouhan-led cabinet.

Governor Mangubhai Patel administered the oath of office as ministers to three legislators at the Raj Bhavan here around 9 am.

Former minister Rajendra Shukla, a Brahmin leader and four-time MLA from Rewa in the Vindh region; Gaurishankar Bisen, a seven-time legislator from Balaghat in the Mahakoshal region who is also the chairman of the MP Backward Class Commission; and first-time MLA from Khargapur in Tikamgarh district of Bundelkhand region Rahul Lodhi took oath as ministers.

While Shukla and Bisen took oath as cabinet ministers, Lodhi was sworn in as minister of state. They are yet to be allotted portfolios, a Raj Bhavan official told PTI.

Lodhi is a nephew of senior BJP leader Uma Bharti.

Bisen (71) and Lodhi (46) belong to the OBC community, which makes up more than 45 per cent of the population of Madhya Pradesh.