Lucknow: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which is currently ruling Uttar Pradesh, has begun preparations for the upcoming assembly polls scheduled to be held next year.


Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath-led government has also begun the exercise of filling the vacant seats of the legislative council. Currently, four seats are vacant and it is being reported that Jitin Prasada will be among those nominated.


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The BJP is also considering making Jitin Prasada, who comes from a strong Brahmin family of Uttar Pradesh, a minister in the state Cabinet. The move is being seen as an attempt on part of the saffron party to please the Brahmins ahead of the assembly polls.


Sanjay Nishad could also be named in the legislative council and be made the minister.  Sanjay Nishad, the founder of the Nishad Party, is putting pressure on the BJP to declare him the deputy chief ministerial candidate. His son Praveen Nishad is a Lok Sabha MP from the Sant Kabir Nagar parliamentray constituency.


Overall, four to six ministers can be included in the upcoming Cabinet expansion. 


Current Status of Yogi Cabinet:


At present, there are 23 cabinet ministers, 9 ministers of independent charge and 22 ministers of state in the state cabinet. The total number of ministers is 54.


According to rules, six ministerial posts are vacant as of now.


Sources close to the Chief Minister claim the cabinet expansion will be done before the assembly’s Monsoon Session. There may be an attempt to include OBC, Brahmins as well as the leaders of other castes in the state cabinet.


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Several Ministers Succumb to COVID-19:


After the formation of the government on March 19, 2017, in Uttar Pradesh, the Yogi government expanded the cabinet on August 22, 2019.  There were 56 members in his cabinet.


Three ministers have succumbed to the coronavirus. Recently, Minister of State Vijay Kumar Kashyap passed away. During the first Covid wave, Minister Chetan Chauhan and Minister Kamal Rani Varun breathed their last.


In the first cabinet expansion, six ministers with independent charge took the oath and there were three new faces too.


(With Inputs From Vikas Bhadauria)