Controversy dogs Akhilesh's last cabinet expansion

Controversy dogged what is probably the last cabinet expansion of Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav before next year’s elections with activists opposing the possible inclusion of tainted mining minister Gayatri Prajapati.

Akhilesh was scheduled to expand his Cabinet on Monday in which Prajapati and another sacked minister Raj Kishore Singh were likely to be reinducted. Social activist Nutan Thakur approached Governor Ram Naik with a petition to prevent Prajapati’s re-induction, with a likely meeting with the governor later in the day. “Prajapati had been removed as minister on serious corruption charges after the order of Allahabad High Court for CBI inquiry,” she said in her petition.

“A minister is removed from office under provisions of Article 164 of the Constitution, when he loses the pleasure of the governor.... when Prajapati was removed as minister, he had lost the pleasure of the governor and hence, he cannot be re-inducted in the ministry unless the facts and reasons on which he had lost the pleasure of the Governor get removed,” she said. Sacked for alleged corruption and land grabbing, Prajapati would in all likelihood be taking oath of office and secrecy for the fourth time in the past three years.