New Delhi:
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Sonia Gandhi had a meeting on Sunday to discuss cabinet reshuffle which is expected to take place in July.
Sources confirm that the two leaders met to begin the process of moving portfolios around - the idea is largely to remove ministers who have not performed. Needs of different key allies of the UPA coalition also have to be tended to. For example, with Mamata Banerjee taking over as Chief Minister of West Bengal, a new Railways Minister has to be announced. Ms Banerjee has made it clear that she expects her party, the Trinamool Congress, to retain this ministry.
Renewable energy minister Farooq Abdullah said, "PM Manmohan Singh wants new faces and he will do a lot of good changes."
While tweaking his Cabinet in January, the PM had said that a larger reconfiguration would take place after the Budget session of Parliament. Ministers braced for this in the first week of June. However, the government's attention has been hijacked by the Lokpal Bill controversy - expected to provide the basis for a tough new law against corruption, the Bill has seen activists representing civil society battling the government over the basic features of the new Bill, like whether it should apply to the Prime Minister.
Water Resources and Minority Affairs minister Salman Khurshid said, "We have been working hard to improve the image of the government and we are hoping for better weather."
The government has committed publicly to delivering the Bill by June 30, after which it will be introduced in Parliament. The Cabinet reshuffle, may then take place in two weeks from now, claim sources. The PM and Sonia Gandhi, who has recently returned after a foreign trip, are likely to hold a series of meetings on the issue in the next few days.
Sources confirm that the two leaders met to begin the process of moving portfolios around - the idea is largely to remove ministers who have not performed. Needs of different key allies of the UPA coalition also have to be tended to. For example, with Mamata Banerjee taking over as Chief Minister of West Bengal, a new Railways Minister has to be announced. Ms Banerjee has made it clear that she expects her party, the Trinamool Congress, to retain this ministry.
Renewable energy minister Farooq Abdullah said, "PM Manmohan Singh wants new faces and he will do a lot of good changes."
While tweaking his Cabinet in January, the PM had said that a larger reconfiguration would take place after the Budget session of Parliament. Ministers braced for this in the first week of June. However, the government's attention has been hijacked by the Lokpal Bill controversy - expected to provide the basis for a tough new law against corruption, the Bill has seen activists representing civil society battling the government over the basic features of the new Bill, like whether it should apply to the Prime Minister.
Water Resources and Minority Affairs minister Salman Khurshid said, "We have been working hard to improve the image of the government and we are hoping for better weather."
The government has committed publicly to delivering the Bill by June 30, after which it will be introduced in Parliament. The Cabinet reshuffle, may then take place in two weeks from now, claim sources. The PM and Sonia Gandhi, who has recently returned after a foreign trip, are likely to hold a series of meetings on the issue in the next few days.
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