PM Narendra Modi To Expand His Cabinet On July 5

New Delhi: On Tuesday, July 5, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to reshuffle and expand his council of ministers on Tuesday before he leaves for the four-nation tour of Africa on July 7. This would be the second reshuffle of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) after it came to power in May 2016.

The expansion is likely to take place at 11 AM on Tuesday that is likely to see major changes in portfolios. Principal spokesperson of the government Frank Norhona tweeted that ‘Cabinet expansion’ will take place tomorrow at 11 AM.

The reshuffle is expected to focus on the upcoming assembly polls in Uttar Pradesh as some of the Members of Parliament from the state are likely to be inducted in the government. Senior leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) said that Mirzapur MP and Apna Dal leader Anupriya Patel may be inducted in the government.

The expansion in the council of ministers is also expected to make way for organizational changes in the BJP, which in any case is due. After the re-election of Amit Shah as the party president, he has not announced his new team. Party leaders believe that the new team will be announced soon after, if not simultaneously, with Modi’s decision to reshuffle his council of ministers.

There is a likelihood of smaller parties getting a berth during the cabinet expansion. There were talks of cabinet expansion for the past several months amid speculation that Prime Minister Narendra Modi could induct new faces from Uttar Pradesh which is going to polls next year. There is a vacancy in the Council of Ministers after Sports Minister Sarbananda Sonowal became the Chief Minister of Assam.