The Uttarakhand government on Friday expanded its cabinet, with five MLAs taking oath as ministers in a move seen as politically significant ahead of the 2027 assembly elections.
Governor Gurmit Singh (retd) administered the oath of office to Bhimtal MLA Ram Singh Kaida, Rajpur MLA Khajan Das, Haridwar MLA Madan Kaushik, Roorkee MLA Pradeep Batra, and Rudraprayag MLA Bharat Singh Chaudhary.
The expansion comes as the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) prepares for the 2027 assembly elections, aiming to secure a third consecutive term in the state. Political observers said the move is expected to help balance regional and caste equations, which are considered crucial in Uttarakhand’s electoral landscape.
Five ministerial positions had been lying vacant in the cabinet led by chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami. Of these, three posts remained unfilled after the BJP returned to power for a second consecutive term in 2022, while two additional vacancies arose following the death of minister Chandan Ram Das in 2023 and the resignation of Premchand Aggarwal in March 2025.
Prior to the expansion, the cabinet included senior leaders such as Satpal Maharaj, Dhan Singh Rawat, Ganesh Joshi, Subodh Uniyal, Saurabh Bahuguna and Rekha Arya.
Political experts believe the induction of new ministers could strengthen the government’s outreach programmes and improve its standing in their respective areas. The move is also seen as an attempt to accommodate senior party loyalists and address internal aspirations, as several MLAs had been lobbying for cabinet berths.
