Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar on Thursday indicated that he may join the Union Cabinet at the Centre, saying the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has asked him to take any assignment that Prime Minister Narendra Modi offers.
"The BJP has indicated to me that if any assignment is given to me by the Prime Minister, I should accept it. The party president also called me to say that I should accept any assignment he gives," he said.
Parrikar, however, evaded direct questions on whether he would join the Union Cabinet in the days to come.
Parrikar is likely to meet the BJP MLAs on Friday to take a decision over the next state chief.
According to sources, 58-year-old Parrikar may be given the Defence portfolio.
Parrikar held discussions with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP chief Amit Shah in the national capital yesterday, leading to speculation that he may be given a Cabinet berth.
The Goa Chief Minister had earlier last evening denied any such talks over his inclusion in the Union Cabinet.
"He has not said anything about that. I discussed with him issues concerning my state Goa," Parrikar told the media after his meeting with the Prime Minister.
Among others, BJP vice-president Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi is expected to be allotted a Cabinet berth.
BJP veteran Yashwant Sinha's son Jayant too is in the race for the Cabinet berth, with reports suggesting that the Harvard MBA is being considered as a Minister of State (MoS) for Defence or Finance. Other key people who are expected to be promoted are MoS Nirmala Sitharaman and Haryana leader Birender Singh.
