The much-awaited Union Cabinet expansion on November 9 has raised hopes of Uttarakhand which has so far not got any representation in the Union Cabinet.
The BJP's resounding electoral success, a clean sweep, in the general elections held this summer in Uttarakhand where the Congress is in power, is one of the major factors that has raised the hopes of the BJP activists here for a berth for their MPs in the Union Cabinet.
More so, giving representation to two leaders from Uttarakhand in the party organisation at national level by the central leadership of the party in the recent past had come as a morale booster for the party’s rank and file here who were a bit disappointed after the party faced two consecutive electoral drubbings in the Assembly by-elections and then in the panchayat polls held a couple of months ago in the Himalayan State.
Presently, senior party leaders from Uttarakhand Anil Baluni was appointed the national spokesperson of the BJP while Trivendra Singh Rawat has been made party in- charge of Jharkhand affairs.The State BJP won all the five lok Sabha seats in Uttarakhand in this year’s general elections.The party's victory in the prestigious Nainital- Udham Singh Nagar seat was interesting as this is the constituency from where the saffron party had won only twice in 12 lok Sabha polls held since 1951 before this year's elections.
However, the former Chief Minister of Uttarakhand and MP from Nainital- Udham Singh Nagar Bhagat Singh Koshiyari during his Kumaon visit had said that giving representation in the Cabinet is the prerogative of the Prime Minister. So it rests with the PM to decide whether he would take from us or not, he said.