Express News Service
Team 2024PM likely to reshuffle Cabinet after Shraadh
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to reshuffle his ministers after the end of the ongoing inauspicious period of Shraadh on September 25. The reshuffle was to take place after the end of the monsoon session of Parliament in the second week of August but got delayed. Sources said about half a dozen ministers are likely to be dropped. The Prime Minister has been keeping a close eye on the performance of his ministers and some of them have not performed to his satisfaction. While undertaking the shake-up, the Prime Minister will be guided by the idea of getting his ministerial team ready for the 2024 Lok Sabha election where he is looking to score a hat-trick. Caste and regional fine-tuning will, therefore, be the dominant theme, along with performance. The PM has already rejigged the party organization by giving his key men charge of different states. These new incharges have been asked to prepare the ground to deliver a maximum number of seats from their respective states.
National SecurityIs NSA Ajit Doval planning to hang his boots?
National Security Advisor A K Doval, whose tales of heroism, and the punishing routine followed by him are among the most widely discussed topics in the informed circles of New Delhi, has reportedly decided to slow down. The 1968 batch IPS officer, who will turn 78 in January next year, has recently been facing health issues, sources said, and added that the chain-smoking super spy has since quit smoking. Doval has had a spectacular stint at the National Security Council Secretariat. Relations and coordination with top foreign spy agencies have never been better, and the situation in neighbourhood has not been bad except for the Chinese belligerence. There is a buzz in New Delhi that Doval may decide to hang his boots while he is still at the top of his game and enjoying the confidence of his boss Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Gaining ParadiseAzad, Sajjad, Bukhari may give BJP its first J&K CM
The BJP is working hard to get its first chief minister in Jammu and Kashmir. The party wins most of the seats in the Hindu-dominated Jammu-Udhampur region, but has failed to make headway in the Muslim-majority Kashmir Valley. Over time, it has formed alliances with both the dominant parties of J&K, namely the National Conference and the People’s Democratic Party, but has remained a junior partner in the state government. Three things have happened since the last assembly elections that have filled the party with the hope of getting its first chief minister. First, the state elections will be conducted under the supervision of the centrally-controlled Lieutenant Governor. Two, the delimitation commission has recently added six more seats to the Jammu region, bringing it almost at par with Kashmir. Jammu had 37 seats earlier. With the creation of six new constituencies in the region, the total number of seats in Jammu has gone up to 46. In contrast, the delimitation commission created just one more constituency in the Valley, taking the total number of seats there from 46 to 47. Third, and the most important reason for the upbeat mood in the BJP is that it has made new friends in the valley who may be willing to accept its dominant role. Among them are Sajjad Lone of the People’s Conference, Altaf Bukhari of the Jammu and Kashmir Apni Party, and Ghulam Nabi Azad, who is yet to announce his new party. While the first two have already announced that they have no problem working with the BJP, Azad may soon follow suit. Restoration of full statehood would be the main poll plank of the pro-BJP Kashmir parties.
Team 2024
PM likely to reshuffle Cabinet after Shraadh
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to reshuffle his ministers after the end of the ongoing inauspicious period of Shraadh on September 25. The reshuffle was to take place after the end of the monsoon session of Parliament in the second week of August but got delayed. Sources said about half a dozen ministers are likely to be dropped. The Prime Minister has been keeping a close eye on the performance of his ministers and some of them have not performed to his satisfaction. While undertaking the shake-up, the Prime Minister will be guided by the idea of getting his ministerial team ready for the 2024 Lok Sabha election where he is looking to score a hat-trick. Caste and regional fine-tuning will, therefore, be the dominant theme, along with performance. The PM has already rejigged the party organization by giving his key men charge of different states. These new incharges have been asked to prepare the ground to deliver a maximum number of seats from their respective states.
National Security
Is NSA Ajit Doval planning to hang his boots?
National Security Advisor A K Doval, whose tales of heroism, and the punishing routine followed by him are among the most widely discussed topics in the informed circles of New Delhi, has reportedly decided to slow down. The 1968 batch IPS officer, who will turn 78 in January next year, has recently been facing health issues, sources said, and added that the chain-smoking super spy has since quit smoking. Doval has had a spectacular stint at the National Security Council Secretariat. Relations and coordination with top foreign spy agencies have never been better, and the situation in neighbourhood has not been bad except for the Chinese belligerence. There is a buzz in New Delhi that Doval may decide to hang his boots while he is still at the top of his game and enjoying the confidence of his boss Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Gaining Paradise
Azad, Sajjad, Bukhari may give BJP its first J&K CM
The BJP is working hard to get its first chief minister in Jammu and Kashmir. The party wins most of the seats in the Hindu-dominated Jammu-Udhampur region, but has failed to make headway in the Muslim-majority Kashmir Valley. Over time, it has formed alliances with both the dominant parties of J&K, namely the National Conference and the People’s Democratic Party, but has remained a junior partner in the state government. Three things have happened since the last assembly elections that have filled the party with the hope of getting its first chief minister. First, the state elections will be conducted under the supervision of the centrally-controlled Lieutenant Governor. Two, the delimitation commission has recently added six more seats to the Jammu region, bringing it almost at par with Kashmir. Jammu had 37 seats earlier. With the creation of six new constituencies in the region, the total number of seats in Jammu has gone up to 46. In contrast, the delimitation commission created just one more constituency in the Valley, taking the total number of seats there from 46 to 47. Third, and the most important reason for the upbeat mood in the BJP is that it has made new friends in the valley who may be willing to accept its dominant role. Among them are Sajjad Lone of the People’s Conference, Altaf Bukhari of the Jammu and Kashmir Apni Party, and Ghulam Nabi Azad, who is yet to announce his new party. While the first two have already announced that they have no problem working with the BJP, Azad may soon follow suit. Restoration of full statehood would be the main poll plank of the pro-BJP Kashmir parties.
