Bongaon MP Thakur, an influential leader of the Matua community, is now one of only two representatives from Bengal in Modi’s new Council of Ministers, the other being Sukanta Majumdar.
The new Council of Ministers has 2 Sikhs, 2 Buddhists and 1 Christian. The share of ministers from 'upper' castes has dropped, while Dalit and OBC representation is largely consistent.
3 of 5 BJP MPs from poll-bound state made it to Modi 3.0. BJP MP from Bhiwani-Mahendragarh Dharambir Singh, lone Jat MP from Haryana, has not found a place in council of ministers.
The other representative is newly-elected Suresh Gopi, whose win from Thrissur handed the BJP its first parliamentary seat in the state, where it has been trying to make inroads.
Athawale's Republican Party of India (RPI) did not contest a single seat this election, has no directly-elected public representative, but still enjoys a certain clout within the NDA.
Apart from the PM, 71 ministers, including 54 from the BJP, were sworn in Sunday, making it one of the largest council of ministers Modi has led since 2014. Portfolios yet to be announced.
Gopi, who contested 2019 Lok Sabha and 2021 assembly elections without success, triumphed in Thrissur with a significant margin of over 70,000 votes, giving BJP its lone LS seat in the state.
Daughter-in-law of former senior BJP leader Eknath Khadse, Raksha Khadse defeated Shriram Patil of the Sharad Pawar NCP by a margin of 2.72 lakh votes in Raver seat this election.
Pakistan would be itching to do an Iran on us and China would be planning to execute an air campaign without allowing us asymmetrical escalation. India has no choice but to transform.
Increase in employment subsidy, Rs 500 crore for estate revamp, new townships in pipeline—but land cost, power breakdowns and inspector raj top among key worries for industry leaders.
CDS Anil Chauhan says future space capability will not be built by government agencies alone. ‘It will be co-developed with industry, start-ups, and technology innovators’.
American objectives are unmet. They neither have muscle nor motivation to resume the war. As for Iran, the regime didn’t just survive, it’s now led by more radical individuals.
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