TRIVANDRUM, 6 September 2004 — Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy expanded his Cabinet yesterday inducting 10 more ministers from his Congress party and five from the allies taking its strength to 20.
He retained the portfolios of Home, Non-Resident Keralites Affairs and Information with him while putting his close confidants in key positions. Vakkom Purushothaman, who resigned as assembly speaker the other day, was given Finance and Excise and was also asked to shift to the official residence of the chief minister. “I have decided to stay in my own house,” said Chandy.
Other Congress ministers and their portfolios are: Aryadan Mohammed (Power), N. Shaktan Nadar (Transport), Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan (Water Resources Management, Parliamentary Affairs), K.C. Venugopal (Tourism, Temples), Adoor Prakash (Food, Civil Supplies), K.P. Vishwanathan (Forest), Domenic Presentation (Fisheries, Sports), A. P. Anil Kumar (Backward Classes Welfare, Youth and Cultural Affairs), K.K. Ramachandran Master (Health).
From the key ally Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) sworn in yesterday, Dr M. K. Muneer retains Public Works while E.T. Mohammed Basheer returns as education minister succeeding Nalakath Sooppy. Kutty Ahmed Kutty succeeds Cherkkalam Abdullah in Local Self-Governments Ministry.
Kerala Congress (M) leader C.F. Thomas is back as registration and local development minister and Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP) leader Babu Divakaran as labor minister.
All the four ministers sworn in along with Chandy last week retain their portfolios—IUML leader P.K. Kunhalikkutty (Industries, IT), KC (M) leader K.M. Mani (Revenue, Housing), Janadhipathya Samrakshana Samithy (JSS) leader K.R. Gowri (Agriculture) and Communist Marxist Party (CMP) leader M.V. Raghavan (Cooperation, Ports).
Announcing the portfolios at a news conference after the swearing-in and the first Cabinet meeting that followed, Chandy said he did not want to keep any portfolio with him but the compulsions forced him to change his mind.
Asked about the senior Congress leader K. Karunakaran’s statement saying his nominees were not included in the Cabinet, he said he had called on Karunakaran in the morning and explained his stand.
“I hope I could offer a convincing explanation. And all those failed to find a place in the Cabinet know better than me why they were kept out,” he said. He also justified keeping out two coalition leaders (R. Balakrishna Pillai and T. M. Jacob) saying the decision was taken by the Congress leadership.
All important Congress leaders and the allies, except Karunakaran, his son K. Muraleedharan, Pillai and Jacob, were present at the Raj Bhavan, where Governor R.L. Bhatia administered the oath to the new ministers.
Chandy Cabinet is widely seen as a combination of experience and youth shrewdly coined to regain lost political grounds.
