Rajasthan CM Ashok Gehlot keeps key ministries in portfolios announced after meet with Rahul Gandhi

The new cabinet in Rajasthan, which was sworn in on December 24, was finally allocated portfolios late on Wednesday night after several rounds of intense discussion in Delhi.

The portfolio allocation to the 23 ministers was preceded by several rounds of meetings in Delhi since chief minister Ashok Gehlot landed in the Capital on Wednesday evening. Sachin Pilot went to national capital a night earlier. The two leaders were in Delhi to iron out difference over the distribution of portfolios as reports suggested they did not agree on the allocation of the home and finance departments.

Gehlot met senior Congress leaders Avinash Pande and KC Venugopal before the three went to meet party president Rahul Gandhi. Gandhi met Pilot after this meeting. Reports in local dailies suggested that Rahul Gandhi went to meet his sister Priyanka Gandhi after these meetings. Gehlot, meanwhile, returned to Jodhpur House. Gandhi and Gehlot met twice thereafter before the orders for the portfolio allocation were issued around 2am.

Earlier on Wednesday, two senior BJP leaders had mocked the delay in portfolio distribution after the ministers were sworn in on December 24. Union minister Arjun Ram Meghwal said there are two governments in the state, one headed by Gehlot and the other by his deputy, Pilot. State BJP president Madanlal Saini said the two parallel governments in the state were fighting each other.

Rajasthan Governor Kalyan Singh allocated the portfolios to the council of ministers late on Wednesday night with the advice of the chief minister, kept nine departments with him, including finance, home, excise, planning, personnel, state intelligence, information technology and general administration departments.

Pilot has been given five departments. They include public works, rural development and panchayati raj, science and technology and statistics, according to an order by the cabinet secretariat.

Apart from the chief minister and deputy chief minister, 13 cabinet and 10 ministers of state were allocated portfolios. The cabinet expansion took place on Monday.

BD Kalla has been given energy, public health engineering, groundwater, art, culture and archaeology departments, and Shanti Dhariwal got urban development and housing, law and parliamentary affairs. Dhariwal held these portfolios in the 2003-2008 Gehlot government as well.

Parsadi Lal Meena has been named the industries minister, and Bhanwar Lal Meghwal got social justice and empowerment department. Lalchand Kataria received the agriculture, animal husbandry and fisheries departments. Raghu Sharma has been given the medical and health, and information and public relations portfolios.

Pramod Bhaya is the mines minister and will also handle the gopalan department. Vishvendra Singh got tourism and devasthan departments.

Harish Chaudhary was allocated revenue and Ramesh Chand Meena got food and civil supply. Anjana Udailal was made cooperative minister and was also given Indira Gandhi canal project department, Pratap Singh got the transport and soldier welfare departments while Shale Mohammad minority affairs and waqf.

Among the ministers of state, Govind Singh Dotasara has been named the education minister with independent charge, and Mamta Bhupesh, the lone woman face, is the minister for women and child development (independent charge). Arjun Singh Bamaniya got tribal area development department as independent charge and Bhanwar Singh Bhati is the minister of higher education (independent charge).

Sukhram Bishnoi got the forest and environment portfolio with independent charge and Ashok Chandna is the new youth affairs and sports minister.

Tika Ram Jully has been named the labour minister and Bhajan Lal Jatav is the minister for home guards and civil defence. Rajendra Singh Yadav was named the minister with independent charge for state motor garage, and RLD MLA Subhash Garg was allocated technical education (independent charge) and Sanskrit education (independent charge).