Muzaffarnagar riots accused finds place in Yogi Adityanath's ministry

Lucknow: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Wednesday inducted 18 new members in his council of ministers, the first such reshuffle since the BJP came to power in the state two and a half years back. Twenty-three ministers — the 18 new faces and five others who were elevated from the minister of state rank they held earlier — were sworn in by Governor Anandiben Patel at the Raj Bhavan.

Six of the 23 were sworn in as cabinet ministers, six as ministers of state with an independent charge and the remaining 11 get the MoS rank. The four MoS-rank ministers promoted to the cabinet-level, include Suresh Rana, 49, a two-time MLA from Thana Bhawan, whose name figures in cases related to the 2013 Muzaffarnagar riots.

Their portfolios are likely to be announced later. Five ministers resigned Tuesday night from the original 43-member ministry. A day before the cabinet reshuffle, the CM was closeted with senior RSS functionaries and top UP BJP leaders to give a final shape to his new team that is expected to lead the state up to the 2022 assembly polls.

Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav on Wednesday said the BJP government is trying to divert people's attention by transferring senior officials on one hand and expanding the ministry on the other. He said during the SP regime, UP was on its way to become 'uttam pradesh' (best state) but the BJP harmed the state's image and turned it into 'hatya pradesh' (murder state). Yadav, in a statement, alleged that Yogi Adityanath is resorting to such tactics after failing on all fronts.

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