CHANDIGARH: The swearing-in ceremony of the new Punjab cabinet, with 15 ministers and seven likely new faces, under CM Charanjit Singh Channi, is scheduled on Sunday evening. Last Sunday, Channi and his two deputies — Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa and OP Soni — had taken the oath of office. It is expected that at least seven new faces will make it to the new cabinet.
The likely new faces are Dr Raj Kumar Verka, Sangat Singh Gilzian, Amrinder Singh Raja Warring, Rana Gurjeet, Gurkirat Singh Kotli, Kuljit Singh Nagra, and Pargat Singh. Pargat, Nagra, and Warring are close to Navjot Sidhu and Verka is an SC.
Senior OBC party leader and PCC working president Gilzian had raised the issue of non-representation of OBC MLAs in the cabinet. Thus, he is likely to be accommodated in the cabinet. Also, those who rallied behind Sidhu in the power tussle with Amarinder are likely to find a place in the cabinet. Thus two former ministers — Tript Rajinder Singh Bajwa and Sukhbinder Sarkaria — who were in the rebel group, are sure to get a place in the new cabinet.
Also, former finance minister Manpreet Singh Badal, who played the role to get Channi as CM, former education minister Vijay Inder Singla, a Hindu face and confidant of Rahul Gandhi, and Brahm Mohindra, the senior-most minister in Amarinder cabinet also a Hindu face, two former women ministers — Razia Sultana and Aruna Chaudhary — who were in the Amarinder ministry, are likely to be re-inducted.
‘POWER COUPLE’ OUT
The new dispensation has replaced Punjab’s ‘Power Couple’ Vini Mahajan (chief secretary) and Dinkar Gupta (DGP). The couple was close to Capt Amarinder Singh.