New Delhi: Union Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan has resigned ahead of the scheduled cabinet reshuffle this evening.
His announcement came soon after Union education minister Ramesh Pokhriyal and labour minister Santosh Gangwar also resigned from the union cabinet.
In a first revamp of the Modi-led cabinet in his second term, the Prime Minister is expected to bring in young faces and give representation to various social groups and regions in the reshuffle.
According to news agency ANI, as many as 43 new members are all set to be sworn in this evening in Prime Minister Modi’s new cabinet which will be one of the most inclusive with record representation of SC, ST members.
Earlier today, over 10 ministerial probables met Prime Minister Narendra Modi at his residence.
Those meeting Modi included BJP’s Narayan Rane, Sarbananda Sonowal, Jyotiraditya Scindia, Ajay Bhatt, Bhupender Yadav, Shobha Karandlaje, Sunita Duggal, Meenakshi Lekhi, Bharati Pawar, Shantanu Thakur and Kapil Patil, JD(U)’s R C P Singh, LJP’s Pashupati Paras and Apna Dal’s Anupriya Patel.
Some ministers of state, including G Kishan Reddy, Parshottam Rupala and Anurag Thakur, were also there, and they may be elevated, sources said. BJP president J P Nadda is also there.
With agency inputs