Two more to join Haryana Cabinet today

Pradeep Sharma

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, December 27

The much-awaited expansion of the Haryana Cabinet will finally take place tomorrow with Governor Bandaru Dattatreya administering oath to new ministers at the Raj Bhavan here.

“The swearing-in will take place at 4 pm,” tweeted Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar. The second expansion of the BJP-JJP government is likely to see the inclusion of two ministers, one each from the BJP and the JJP.

Kamal Gupta, a two-time BJP MLA from Hisar, and Devender Singh Babli, JJP MLA from Tohana, are the frontrunners for ministerial berths. A meeting of JJP MLAs will be held tomorrow before the swearing-in to formally announce the party nominee while the BJP seems to have zeroed in on Gupta.

In October 2019, Khattar and Deputy CM Dushyant Chautala had taken oath after the BJP and the JJP cobbled up an alliance. The first expansion of the council of ministers took place in November that year when 10 ministers were inducted. Six of them were of Cabinet rank and four Ministers of State.