Six reasons why Raje is still the boss

Rajasthan chief minister Vasundhara Raje has reinforced that she is a strong chief minister and a powerful leader within the BJP after her first cabinet expansion in ten months.

She has left all those leaders who could have troubled her, given their attitude in the past. It shows she has the backing of the party bosses, despite rumours to the contrary. She has inducted 14 ministers, four of whom are of cabinet rank.

She was holding 46 departments with her and has successfully thwarted pressure for expansion all these months as she felt accommodating a few would upset the remaining MLAs.

BJP has 160 in the 200-member Assembly and it must have been a tough task for her to pick a few and ignore others including her loyalists.

Expansion should help her running her administration smoothly.

Here are six reasons why she emerges stronger:

1. She decided the timing of expansion even when she got a green signal to go ahead as early as in August.

2. Her selection indicates that she has succeeded in taking along moderates amongst RSS and her loyalists.

3. She has left out Ghanshyam Tiwari, her only vocal critic despite suggestions from some prominent leaders at the Centre. It ends his effort to become a Brahmin leader.

4. She has left out Narpat Singh Rajvi, son-in-law of the late Bhairon Singh Shekhawat, ending his dream to emerge as carrier of his legacy.

5. She has left out Rao Rajendra Singh, who because of his intelligent but independent views, could have been a hurdle in building consensus in the cabinet on her terms.

6. She has brought in other leaders who are either first timers or are of second rung including those with backing of RSS who would balance caste equation and regional equations in place of established leaders who have been left out.