The recently-elected MlA from Bhagwanpur Assembly constituency, Mamta Rakesh, expressed her intention to join the State Cabinet after being administered the oath by Assembly speaker Govind Singh Kunjwal, on Friday. Chief Minister Harish Rawat said the matter will be presented to the party leadership.
Widow of Cabinet Minister Surendra Rakesh, Mamta Rakesh, took oath in the presence of the Chief Minister, Pradesh Congress Committee chief Kishore Upadhyay and other party leaders in the Assembly. Speaking to the media later, she averred that the voters in her constituency were eager to see her as a Cabinet Minister. She said, “The voters gave me a historical win in the by-election and they are telling me that they had elected me to see me become a Cabinet Minister and not just an MlA. It is now up to the party high command to consider my position,” she said.
Responding to media queries on the Bhagwanpur MlA’s claim to a Cabinet berth, the Chief Minister said that he along with the PCC chief Kishore Upadhyay would present the issue to the top leadership of the party for consideration. A decision will be taken in this regard soon, added Rawat. Meanwhile, Assembly speaker GS Kunjwal said that three years after its formation, the Congress-led State Government had now attained absolute majority with 36 MlAs in the 70-strong Vidhan Sabha.