12 more Assam ministers to take oath today, four of them debutants

Guwahati: The three‑week‑old Assam council of ministers led by CM Himanta Biswa Sarma will be expanded on Friday with the induction of 12 more ministers, four of them being debutants.Of the new inductees, 11 belong to BJP, while one represents Asom Gana Parishad (AGP), a key ally in the NDA coalition.The expansion will raise the cabinet’s strength to 17, leaving two slots vacant out of the maximum permissible 19, including the CM.Sarma, along with four legislators -- Ajanta Neog and Rameswar Teli of BJP, Atul Borah of AGP and Charan Boro of Bodoland People’s Front (BPF) -- had taken oath on May 12 in the presence of PM Narendra Modi, marking the formation of the new govt.According to the list announced by Sarma on Thursday, the debutant inductees include four BJP members — Ashwini Ray Sarkar, a two‑time MLA; Biswajit Daimary, former Rajya Sabha member, ex‑Speaker, and three‑time MLA; Nilima Devi, first‑time MLA; and Susanta Borgohain, a three‑time MLA.Other names in the expanded cabinet are Ashok Singhal, Bimal Borah, Jayant Mallabaruah, Kaushik Rai, Keshab Mahanta (AGP), Krishnendu Paul, Pijush Hazarika, and Ranoj Pegu. All of them were ministers in the previous cabinet.The expanded cabinet will be a carefully calibrated mix of region, community, and identity representation, while underlining the BJP’s dominance. Out of 17 ministers, 14 are from BJP, two from AGP, and one from BPF, ensuring coalition balance and establishing BJP’s numerical control.NDA won 102 of the 126 seats in the elections, comprising BJP’s 82 and AGP and BPF’s 10 each.From a regional scope, upper Assam finds space through BJP’s Bimal Borah, Susanta Borgohain, Rameswar Teli and Ajanta Neog and AGP’s Atul Borah, while lower Assam is represented by CM Himanta Biswa Sarma, Jayant Mallabaruah and Ashwini Ray Sarkar, the latter significant as a Hindu face from Muslim-majority Dhubri district. All of them are from BJP.The north bank gets weight with Ashok Singhal, Nilima Devi and Ranoj Pegu. The Barak Valley is covered by Kaushik Rai and Krishnendu Paul, all BJP members.Central Assam is anchored by Pijush Hazarika of BJP and Keshab Mahanta of AGP.Community representation is equally layered, with the tea community finding their voice in Rameswar Teli, while women ministers Ajanta Neog and Nilima Devi add gender balance. Tribal groups are represented by Ranoj Pegu (Mising), BPF’s Charana Boro and BJP’s Biswajit Daimary (both representing Bodo community). Borgohain is the lone Ahom representative.Linguistic minority representation is visible in two Bengali legislators from Dhubri and the Barak Valley, Sarkar and Paul.