Chandigarh, Jun 24 (PTI) Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Tuesday said that the cabinet expansion will take place in two-to-four days and Sanjeev Arora, who won the Ludhiana West assembly bypoll, will be inducted as a minister.
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) retained the Ludhiana West seat in the recent bypoll, with Arora registering a victory against his nearest rival and Congress candidate Bharat Bhushan Ashu by a margin of 10,637 votes.
Arora secured 35,179 votes while Ashu got 24,542 votes. BJP’s Jiwan Gupta polled 20,323 votes while Shiromani Akali Dal nominee Parupkar Singh Ghuman received 8,203 votes. Ghuman lost his security deposit.
The bypoll — held on June 19 — was necessitated by the death of AAP MLA Gurpreet Bassi Gogi in January. The result was announced on Monday.
Responding to a query on cabinet expansion during an interaction with media after meeting the Governor on Tuesday, Mann said it will take place in two-to-four days.
He said the party had promised the voters of Ludhiana West seat that if they elect Sanjeev Arora, he will be made a minister.
Asked if there will be changes in the cabinet or change in portfolios, he said there is no such a thing.
At present, there are 16 ministers in the cabinet, including the chief minister. The Punjab cabinet can have up to 18 ministers.
The AAP government had carried out its last cabinet rejig in September last year when it inducted five new ministers after dropping four existing ministers.
Post his bypoll win, Arora will now resign as a Rajya Sabha member.
When asked who will be sent to Rajya Sabha in place of Arora, Mann said, “Let us think over it. It should be someone who can effectively raise Punjab’s issues.” Earlier, AAP supremo and former Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal had clarified that he would not go to the Rajya Sabha after Arora wins the bypoll.
Mann said he will visit Delhi on Wednesday where the party will thank the public mandate in the bypolls in Punjab and Gujarat.
In Gujarat’s Junagadh district, former AAP state president Gopal Italia emerged victorious in Visavadar, defeating BJP’s Kirit Patel by 17,554 votes. PTI CHS RUK RUK
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