Assam Cabinet Expansion On The Cards? Bhabesh Kalita Says...

Assam BJP chief Bhabesh Kalita on Friday hinted at a possible cabinet expansion in the state. Asked about it, he said that the chief minister will take a decision on it, however, anything that happens is likely only after the swearing-in of Narendra Modi as the Prime Minister.

Courted by reporters after the National Democratic Alliance's (NDA) meet in Delhi today, Kalita said that the proposal to further Narendra Modi as the Prime Minister for a third consecutive term was accepted with unanimous support from allied parties that are part of the front.

He said, "The proposal for Narendra Modi to assume office for the third time was passed in today's meeting. Union defence minister Rajnath Singh had put forward the proposal which was supported by every alliance leader."

"The parliamentary board, national leadership and alliance leaders will decide on the next cabinet. We would all like it if we get 10 ministers from Assam, but let us see what happens," said Kalita when asked about the possibility of three union ministers from the state this time.

The Assam BJP president further said, "Our performance was good. We secured 11 out of the 14 seats. Congress did well in the minority areas, but we won with huge margins in the 94 Hindu majority assembly constituencies."

"There might be an expansion of the cabinet at the Centre. In Assam also, the chief minister will take a decision on it. We will discuss about everything else including some conflicts in a meeting after June 12," he added.

Meanwhile, Assam was represented by newly elected MPs from Guwahati and Sonitpur, Bijuli Kalita Medhi and Ranjit Dutta, respectively, NDA ally Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) chief and state cabinet minister Atul Bora and the CEM of Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC) and United People's Party Liberal (UPPL) chief Pramod Boro at the meeting.

Speaking afterwards, Atul Bora said, "Today, all the NDA allies in Assam met with Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma and congratulated him. We did not raise any demands from AGP in front of him today. After the government is formed, we will list our issues in writing.

Additionally, Pramod Boro said, "Under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, we will have a strong government," while targeting opposition leader Akhil Gogoi for his "special status" demand.

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