VIJAYAWADA: AAP leader Raaj Kumar Anand will soon assume charge as a minister in the Delhi Cabinet, with President Droupadi Murmu accepting the city government’s recommendation in this regard.
The appointment was announced in a gazette notification issued on Tuesday.
“The President is pleased to appoint, on the advice of the Chief Minister of the National Capital Territory of Delhi, Shri Raaj Kumar Anand as a Minister in the National Capital Territory of Delhi, with effect from the date he is sworn in,” the gazette notification said.
Days after Rajendra Pal Gautam resigned from the Cabinet on October 9 following a row over his presence at a religious conversion event, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had said he had recommended the name of Anand, the Patel Nagar MLA, to the lieutenant governor for including him in his ministry.
Gautam was the minister for departments of social welfare, SC and ST, registrar of co-operative societies and gurudwara elections. Anand and his wife Veena joined AAP after its formation in 2011-2012, before which he was associated with the anti-corruption movement in the capital.
Like Gautam, Anand is also from the Jatav community.