Sources indicate that the Yogi Adityanath-led Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) administration in Uttar Pradesh is poised to undergo a cabinet expansion on Tuesday (March 5), a development that comes after a protracted period of conjecture. This comes on the heels of the Rajya Sabha elections held on February 27, wherein the saffron party clinched victory in eight seats within the state.
According to insights provided to India Today, it is anticipated that three new entrants from the BJP, accompanied by two legislators from the Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) and one from the Suheldev Bhartiya Samaj Party (SBSP), will be ushered into the Cabinet.
The decision for RLD to join the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) was affirmed by RLD chief Jayant Chaudhary on February 12. In a concise interaction with the press, Chaudhary attributed the swift decision-making to prevailing circumstances.
RLD sources suggest that the party's alignment with the NDA ensued from disparities between its leader and Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav concerning the allocation of Lok Sabha constituencies in Uttar Pradesh.
Amidst fervent anticipation surrounding the imminent cabinet expansion, conjecture has surfaced regarding the potential reinstatement of SBSP chief Om Prakash Rajbhar into the Uttar Pradesh cabinet fold.
Rajbhar, a former associate of Akhilesh Yadav who was expelled from the Yogi Adityanath-led government in 2019 due to purported "anti-alliance activities", rekindled ties with the NDA in July 2023.
