Immediately after the cabinet expansion of Chief Minister Champai Soren, the Cabinet Secretariat and Coordination Department issued a notification to distribute portfolios among the ministers. Basant Soren, the younger brother of ex-Chief Minister Hemant Soren, has three key ministries: road construction, building construction, and water resources.
Chief Minister Champai Soren has retained the Home (including Prison) Department, Department of Personnel, Administrative Reforms and Official Language, Cabinet Secretariat and Monitoring Department and all such departments which are not allocated to other ministers. Alamgir Alam has been allocated the Rural Development Department, Rural Affairs Department, Panchayati Raj Department.
Satyanand Bhokta, the lone representative from RJD quota has been allocated with Labour Employment Training and Skill Development Department and Industry Department.
Dr Rameshwar Oraon, minister from Congress quota has been assigned with the finance department, Planning and Development Department, Department of Commerce, Department of Food, Public Distribution and Consumer Affairs.
Baby Devi, the only women minister in Champai Cabinet, was also allocated with the Women Child Development and Social Security Department. Hafeezul Hasan has been allocated with Minority Welfare Department, Registration Department, Tourism, Art-Culture, Sports and Youth Affairs Department
Mithilesh Thakur has been given Drinking Water and Sanitation Department, Excise and Prohibition Department. Badal has been assigned ministry of Agriculture, Animal Husbandry and Co-operation.
Banna Gupta has bagged Health, Medical Education and Family Welfare Department, Disaster Management Department.
Deepak Birua has got Scheduled Tribe, Scheduled Caste and Backward Class Welfare Department (except Minority Welfare) and transport Department.
Meanwhile, the dropping of Baidyanath Ram from list at last minutes has given an opportunity to attack BJP on Champai government as being anti-Dalit. The Scheduled Caste community of Jharkhand with a population of 50 lakh had to face another fraud by the thugbandhan government.
BJP Scheduled Caste Morcha State President Kishun Kumar Das said that the anti-Dalit face of JMM, Congress and RJD has once again come to the fore. JMM once again does not consider Dalits worthy of participation. Once again, the public will give a befitting reply to this incompetent and fraudulent government in the Lok Sabha and Assembly elections.
Latehar legislator Baidyanath Ram, who was also supposed to take oath on Friday, did not make it to the Cabinet at the last minute due to protests from the Congress MLAs.
Ram was number 2 in the list of candidates, sent to Raj Bhawan. However he was struck off the list at the last minute. Expressing anger on the turn of events, Ram said that the JMM decision had not sent a good message,-particularly to the Scheduled Caste community.
“I have taken this humiliation seriously and will react to it. Ek do din mein result ayega (the result will come in a day or two),” said Ram.
JMM chief Shibu Soren’s elder daughter in law Sita Soren was also supposed to take-oath as minister but, surprisingly her name was missing from the list.
Congress, however, frustrated the JMM’s plan to induct a member of Scheduled Caste community in the cabinet and finally prevailed over the JMM leadership to leave the 12th berth vacant.
The Congress MLAs were eyeing the 12th berth and wanted to replace some ministers from the party quota.