New Delhi:
Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) chief Ajit Singh was sworn in today as a Union Cabinet minister in the Manmohan Singh government. He has been given charge of the Civil Aviation portfolio. This is the fourth time Mr Singh has been inducted into the Union Cabinet.
Apart from the Prime Minister and UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi, the swearing-in ceremony at the Rashtrpati Bhavan was also attended by senior cabinet ministers like P Chidambaram, Kapil Sibal and Beni Prasad Verma. Vayalar Ravi, the current Civil Aviation Minister, though was conspicuous by his absence.
The 72-year-old Jat leader from western Uttar Pradesh has become a part of the Manmohan Singh cabinet a week after his party formally joined the UPA, the first political outfit to do so since the alliance came to power for the second time in May 2009.
With RLD joining the ruling coalition, the Congress-led UPA's strength in the Lok Sabha has gone up from 272 to 277.
Speaking to reporters outside the Rashtrapati Bhavan soon after taking oath of office, Mr Singh said that his alliance with the Congress has now provided a "clear-cut alternative" to the people of UP against the "oppressive" Mayawati-led BSP government.
"Our mind now is on Uttar Pradesh. People of UP are feeling oppressed with the Mayawati government but are now getting an alternative...People have now got a clear-cut alternative," Mr Singh said.
Mr Singh's inclusion in the UPA is significant in that it comes ahead of the crucial Uttar Pradesh elections due in a few months. His party, the RLD, has a significant base in the western part of the state.
The alliance is also important given the sustained bid by the Congress, particularly its general secretary and youth leader Rahul Gandhi, to retrieve lost ground in Uttar Pradesh.