First Cabinet reshuffle of Modi 2.0: Suresh Prabhu may be back
New Delhi, Oct 3 (IANS)
After coming back to power with a thumping majority this May, the Modi government is all set to go for it's first Cabinet reshuffle very soon.
Sources say, the reshuffle can take place as early as in the next 15 days.
Informed sources told IANS that a major inclusion in the new Cabinet can be Suresh Prabhu, who is likely to make a comeback, after he was dropped from the Cabinet when Modi took oath on May 30, this year. The former Shiv Sainik is tipped to head the Commerce and Industry Ministry. Right now, the portfolio is being handled by Piyush Goyal.
Prabhu earlier in Modi 1.0 had handled Commerce and Industry portfolio. He is also India's 'Sherpa' at the G-20.
One of the reasons Prabhu didn't make the cut was an overwhelming feeling within the BJP that Prabhu failed to garner dividends for the party in spite of holding portfolios like Railways which plays a key role in influencing the electorate.
Modi, however is expected to bring in more technocrats and people with core expertise for ministries that are crucial for the economic turnaround of the country. Remember, Modi surprised many when S. Jaishankar, a former foreign secretary was inducted in the Cabinet this time. But his domain expertise in international diplomacy helped India sail through after abrogation of Article 370 of the Constitution that gave special powers to Kashmir.
Right now there are 58 ministers in the union council of ministers and just 24 out of them are of Cabinet rank. Many ministers who are shuttling between many portfolios will be divested of some of their responsibilities, say sources.
For example, Narendra Singh Tomar holds Agriculture & Farmers Welfare, Rural Development and Panchayati Raj portfolios. Or for that matter, Ravi Shankar Prasad is entrusted with responsibilities of Law & Justice, Communications, Electronics & Information Technology – three key ministries.
Chances are, some of them may be relieved of the additional burden, given the important role they play also for the organisation. Tomar is the Haryana election in charge, while Prasad is the key BJP face to communicate from the party platform, after the death of Arun Jaitley.
It's the first ever Cabinet reshuffle after the Modi government swept back to power with 303 seats. With the box of Article 370 ticked, the goal of this reshuffle will be economic turnaround.