Indian PM Plans Another Cabinet Reshuffle

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Monday, September 08, 2003

Indian PM Plans Another Cabinet Reshuffle

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Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee is planning a minor cabinet reshuffle and expansion before he leaves for the United States to address the United Nations General Assembly in New York later this month.

Vajpayee held discussions lasting more than an hour Saturday athis residence with Deputy Prime Minister Lal Kishenchand Advani, Finance Minister Jaswant Singh, and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president M. Venkaiah Naidu, the Press Trust of India (PTI) reported Sunday.

Trinamool Congress president Mamata Banerjee and one of her party's MPs are among those likely to be inducted into the Union Council of Ministers, a BJP official was quoted as saying on Sunday.

Besides the Trinamool Congress politicians, others who are likely to be inducted are the BJP's chief whip in Parliament V.K. Malhotra and Dhananjay Kumar, a party MP from Mangalore, PTI said.

The prime minister last expanded his cabinet in May this year inducting seven new ministers.

The more than 20-party coalition government of India came to power in 1999 and has around 79 ministers, including the prime minister.

Several key states are due for polls later this year while elections for the central government are scheduled for 2004.

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