Himachal cabinet expansion soon: CM Thakur

The cabinet expansion will take place shortly, said Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur on the sidelines of a function in Hamirpur on Saturday. The CM said he had consulted the party high command regarding the cabinet expansion recently. Thakur had met Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi two days ago amidst reports of cabinet expansion. The expansion will be affected to fill two ministerial berths, which have been lying vacant for the past several months.

Anil Sharma, who was the power minister in the state government, had to resign after his son Aashray contested on the Congress ticket from the Mandi Lok Sabha seat this year. Anil had refused to campaign for the BJP candidate from Mandi, Ram Swaroop Sharma. Kishan Kapoor, who was the Dharamshala MLA and civil supplies minister in the state government, had resigned after he was elected to the Lok Sabha in May from Kangra.

There are unconfirmed reports that one or two ministers may be dropped from the cabinet and new faces may be inducted. Thakur also congratulated Devendra Fadnavis for becoming the Chief Minister of Maharashtra again. He said the accusations levelled against the new government by the Shiv Sena and the NCP were false as the Governor had invited the BJP for the formation of the government as per rules and regulations.

The CM further stated that the issue of spreading canard against some senior leaders of the party, including ministers, through social media had also reached the party high command and strong action would be taken against those indulging in such nefarious activities. Earlier, he addressed the inaugural session of a national conference on "Western Himalaya Kshetra Main Rishi Parampara", organised by Thakur Jagdev Chand Memorial Research Institute, Hamirpur, and the Himachal Art Culture and Language Academy, at Neri. Thakur said the state was blessed to have been chosen as "tapobhoomi" by hundreds of sages, leaving an indelible imprint on the life of people.