The first Cabinet expansion of the two-and-a-half-year-old Shivraj Singh Chouhan Government in Madhya Pradesh became controversial on Thursday after two Ministers above 75 years of age were asked to resign.
The age bar, set by Prime Minister Narendra Modi when the BJP came to power, was implemented in Madhya Pradesh. There were talks in this regard for quite some time, but at the time of reshuffle, the national leaders of the party decided not to continue with aged Ministers.
These two Ministers first declined to step down when State BJP president Nandkumar Singh Chouhan and State BJP organizational general secretary Suhas Bhagat approached them at their residences. They categorically said that they have done nothing wrong and they are more fit than the young Ministers.
After the new Ministers were administered the oath, Gaur told media persons, "I have tendered my resignation adhering to the directions given by the party."
From time to time, Gaur, a 10-time MlA from Govindpura seat in Bhopal, has sparked off controversies with his off-the-cuff remarks, often embarrassing his party.
However, political circles feel that from Bhopal when Vishwas Sarang was inducted in the Cabinet, Gaur had to go. In the situation, Sarang emerged as stronger in comparison to Gaur.
Moreover, it is believed that the Chief Minister too was not happy with the final list of Cabinet Ministers, as the central leadership finalized most of the names. Besides, the decision to drop Babulal Gaur and Sartaj Singh was also not his decision. Chouhan was of the opinion that there was no need to drop these two Ministers, as they had been working properly and faced no complaints.
After the resignation by the two Ministers, at present there is vacancy of five members in the Cabinet.
The Cabinet meeting is scheduled on Friday morning and it is expected that after discussing with his Cabinet colleagues, the Chief Minister would allocate new portfolios to them.