In her first cabinet expansion ten months after assuming office, Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje today inducted 15 members into her council of ministers, raising the size of her ministry to 27.
Of the 15 new faces, four were given cabinet rank, six were sworn in as Minister of State with Independent charge, and five others as Minister of State.
Eight of them were ministers in Raje's previous term during 2003-08.
Those sworn in as Cabinet Ministers are Rajpal Singh (MLA from Jhotwara), Kiran Maheshwari (Rajsamand), Surendra Goyal (Jaitaran) and Rampratap (Hanumangarh).
Amra Ram (Pachpadra), Krishnendra Kaur (Nadbai), Vasudev Devnani (Ajmer North), Rajkumar Rinwa, Surendra Pal Singh (Karanpur) and Anita Bhadel (Ajmer South) were sworn in as Ministers of State (all with Independent portfolio).
The new Ministers of State are Pushpendra Singh (Bali), Baboo Lal Verma (Keshoraipatan), Arjun Lal (Bilara), Otaram Dewasi (Sirohi), and Jeet Mal Khant.
While 14 ministers were administered oath by Governor Kalyan Singh in the morning, Garhi MLA Khant was inducted in a special event later in the evening at Raj Bhawan as he could not make it in time.
Khant, a tribal leader and three-time MLA, was away at his home in Banswara district, over 500 km from state capital Jaipur, when he got the invite to join the government.
Responding to a volley of questions, Raje said, "Now a good team is constituted and they (ministers) will do public welfare works".
She turned towards RSS leaders Rajendra Bhai, Durgadas and Moolchand sitting as VIP guests, and asked them "Ab aap log santusht to ho na (Are you satisfied now)?"
In response, they smiled with folded hands.
With today's expansion, Raje cabinet now constitutes 13 cabinet ministers, nine minister of states with Independent portfolios, and five MOS.
