This Article is From Mar 25, 2022

Buzz On Brahmin Leader Brajesh Pathak As Yogi Adityanath's No. 2: Sources

Ahead of the grand ceremony, a meeting at his home with some newly-elected MLAs and others triggered speculation about his new ministers.

CM Yogi Adityanath contested from Gorakhpur Sadar and won the seat by a huge margin.

New Delhi:

Yogi Adityanath will be sworn in later today for a record second term as Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister. Ahead of the oath ceremony, a meeting of select leaders at his home triggered speculation about new ministers.

Here are some possible new ministers:

Yogi Adityanath will have two deputies, like before. Keshav Maurya, who lost the election, is likely to retain his post but Dinesh Sharma, who did not contest the election, may be replaced by Brajesh Pathak, say sources. Brajesh Pathak, a top Brahmin leader, was Law Minister in Yogi Adityanath's first government. A former Lok Sabha MP, he switched to the BJP from Mayawati's BSP in 2017.

AK Sharma: A Member of UP's legislative council, he was sent by the BJP leadership to UP two years ago. A former bureaucrat at the Prime Minister's Office, he was known to be close to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Yogi Adityanath had reportedly resisted his entry into the cabinet earlier.

Baby Rani Maurya: She quit as Uttarakhand Governor to contest the UP election from Agra. She is one of the most prominent Scheduled Caste faces of the BJP.

Brajesh Pathak: Law minister in the previous UP government, he won from a seat in Lucknow. He is a prominent Brahmin leader of the party.

Jitin Prasada: He crossed over from the Congress last year and was made a minister in the Yogi Adityanath government. He is tipped to be a minister again.

Asim Arun: The former IPS (Indian Police Service) officer took voluntary retirement to join the BJP and contest the election. He won from Kannauj.

Swatantra Dev Singh: The state BJP chief is one of the party's most prominent OBC (Other Backward Class) leaders. He is tipped for a top ministry.

Dinesh Khatik: He won from Hastinapur Meerut and is an important Dalit leader of the BJP in western UP.

Sandeep Singh: The BJP MLA from Atrauli is former UP Chief Minister Kalyan Singh's grandson.

Arun Valmiki: He is an important BJP leader representing the Valmiki community.

Ashish Patel: The Apna Dal leader is a Member of the Legislative Council and the husband of Anupriya Patel. The Apna Dal is an important ally of BJP, which won 12 seats in the recent election.

Sanjay Nishad: He heads the Nishad Party, a BJP ally. His son is a BJP MP from eastern UP.

Dayashankar Singh: He was suspended by the BJP in 2016 for his hugely controversial comments on BSP chief Mayawati. His wife, Swati Singh, was a minister in the previous Yogi Adityanath government but was denied a ticket this time. The BJP fielded Dayashankar Singh, her estranged husband, instead.

Other likely ministers include Salil Vishnoi, a Legislative Council member, and MLAs Yogendra Upadhyaya, Kapil Dev Agrawal and Ravindra Jaiswal.

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