Punjab cabinet rejig: Balkar gets local bodies, Khudian agriculture

The Bhagwant Mann-led Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government in Punjab on Wednesday expanded its cabinet by inducting two party MLAs Gurmeet Singh Khudian and Balkar Singh as ministers.

Governor Banwarilal Purohit administered the oath to the newly inducted ministers at a simple ceremony in Raj Bhavan in Chandigarh.

Soon after the ceremony, Balkar Singh, 60, was allocated the crucial local government portfolio as civic body elections are expected to be announced soon in the state. Besides, he will hold the parliamentary affairs charge, which was being looked after by Inderbir Singh Nijjar before he quit the cabinet on Tuesday.

Gurmeet Singh Khudian, 60, was allocated agriculture, farmers’ welfare, animal husbandry and dairy development and food processing.

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In a major setback, Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal will now hold only low-profile departments of NRI affairs and administrative reforms. Besides agriculture, Mann divested Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal of rural development and panchayati raj departments and gave them to Laljit Singh Bhullar in addition to transport. As rural development minister, Dhaliwal was at the forefront of vacating government and shamlat land from private players.

Water resources, mines and geology minister Gurmeet Singh Meet Hayer has been allocated conservation of land and water in addition to the departments with him.

Khudian represents Lambi in the assembly and was among the giant slayers of the party as he had defeated Akali patriarch and five-time chief minister Parkash Singh Badal in last year’s elections. Balkar Singh, a former Punjab Police Service (PPS) officer, is the MLA from the Kartarpur (reserved) falling under Jalandhar Lok Sabha constituency won by the party in the recent byelection.

In Kartarpur, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) had taken the highest lead in byelection in which the ruling party defeated the Congress by 10,682 votes.

The two first-time MLAs were inducted into the cabinet a day after local bodies minister Inderbir Singh Nijjar quit in a dramatic turn of events. Mann forwarded Nijjar’s resignation to the governor for early acceptance.

Third cabinet expansion of Bhagwant Mann govt

This is the third cabinet expansion by Mann in 14 months in Punjab. With the induction of the two new ministers, the Punjab cabinet now has 16 ministers, including the chief minister.

Mann, who took over as the chief minister on March 16 last year, expanded the cabinet by inducting five MLAs as ministers in July 2022, and then one more was inducted this January. The constitutional cap allows for 18 ministers, including the chief minister, which is 15% of the number of members of the assembly.

AAP national convener and Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal and several of his ministers are expected to attend a dinner hosted by the chief minister at his residence in Chandigarh on Wednesday for party leaders, including MPs and MLAs.

Rajya Sabha member Raghav Chadha was present at the oath-taking ceremony.

Nijjar is the third minister to lose his cabinet berth in the Mann government. Earlier, Dr Vijay Singla and Fauja Singh Sarari had to resign following allegations of corruption.