Maharashtra CM Chavan brings in new faces to cabinet

MUMBAI: Barely a few days after his appointment as the Maharashtra chief minister, Ashok Chavan has started a Cabinet reshuffle. Chavan has removed Satish Chaturvedi, who held the textile portfolio and Minister of State for Labour Baba Siddiqui and has announced the names of four new entrants to his cabinet.
Surup Sinh Naik from Nandurbar, who earlier held the forest ministry and spent some time in jail, makes a comeback in Chavan���s cabinet.He belongs to the adivasi community.
Naseem Khan from Kurla, Mumbai, is also in, so are Nitin Raut from Nagpur who belongs to backward class and Shobha Bachhao from Nashik, who belongs to the OBC (other backward class) category. From the Congress quota, three posts are still lying vacant. It remains to be seen whether Chavan will fill them with Rane���s supporters or keep them vacant like his predecessor Vilasrao Deshmukh did.
PWD Minister Anil Deshmukh of NCP has also been dropped from the Ashok Chavan cabinet.
Though earlier in the day the CM did not show any eagerness to take on board any of Rane���s supporters, he appears to have had a change of heart. He has invited Vijay Wadettiwar of Chandrapur, Vidarbha district to be Minister of State. Wadettiwar is from the Rane camp. In a surprise move, however, education minster Vasant Purke (hailing from Yavatmal district) of Congress was dropped. Portfolios allotted to ministers will be announced on Tuesday.
Rebel Congress leader Narayan Rane, who has been suspended for speaking against the party, has already given a green signal to his supporters to join Chavan���s cabinet.