6 new ministers join Yogi Adityanath's cabinet ahead of 2027 Uttar Pradesh polls

The expansion is seen as a bid to fine-tune socio-political equations in the BJP’s favour as the party seeks a third successive term in the state.

Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath inducted six new ministers into his cabinet on Sunday, including two of cabinet rank and four ministers of state, while elevating two ministers of state (MoS) to independent charge—a move aimed at strengthening the BJP’s socio-political base ahead of the 2027 assembly elections.

UP Governor Anandiben Patel with CM Yogi Adityanath, his deputies Brajesh Pathak and Keshav Prasad Maurya, and state BJP chief Pankaj Chaudhary during the oath-taking ceremony of newly-elected and promoted ministers. (ANI)

The expansion is seen as a bid to fine-tune socio-political equations in the BJP’s favour as the party seeks a third successive term in the state.

The new cabinet ministers are former UP BJP president Bhupendra Chaudhary and former Samajwadi Party (SP) minister Manoj Pandey. The new MoS are Krishna Paswan, Kailash Rajput, Surendra Diler and Hansraj Vishwakarma.

Those elevated include MoS for science and technology, electronics and IT Ajit Pal, who represents the Sikandara assembly constituency of Kanpur Dehat, and MoS for energy and additional sources of energy, Somendra Tomar, an MLA from the Meerut (south) assembly constituency. Both were sworn in as MoS (independent charge), and new portfolios are likely to be allotted to them soon.

Governor Anandiben Patel administered the oath of office and secrecy to the new and elevated ministers at a simple ceremony attended by senior ministers and officers at Jan Bhavan in Lucknow on Sunday.

The second ministerial expansion of the Yogi 2.0 government is also being considered the BJP’s attempt to counter the main opposition, the SP, which has continued to focus on the PDA (Pichhda, Dalit and Alpsankhyak) formula.

Those inducted include one Brahmin, three OBCs and two Dalit leaders.

Among the new cabinet ministers, Pandey, a Brahmin leader, represents the Unchahar assembly constituency of Rae Bareli—the parliamentary seat of the leader of the opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi. He was the SP’s former chief whip, a former cabinet minister in the Akhilesh Yadav government and an unattached MLA. Bhupendra Chaudhary, a Jat leader, former minister and now an MLC, was the first to be sworn in.

With the induction of Dalit leader Krishna Paswan, the BJP MLA from Khaga in Fatehpur, the number of women in the Yogi ministry has risen to six.

Of the six newly inducted ministers, two hail from west UP, one from east UP and three from central Uttar Pradesh. Chaudhary is from Moradabad, while the new MoS Surendra Diler, a Dalit leader and BJP MLA, represents the Khair assembly constituency of Aligarh. Hansraj Vishwakarma, a BJP MLC and OBC leader, is the district BJP president of Varanasi—the Lok Sabha constituency of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The three other new ministers are from central UP: OBC leader Kailash Rajput represents the Tirwa assembly constituency of Kannauj, while Pandey and Krishna Paswan also hail from the region.

The Yogi 2.0 ministry had six vacancies. Sunday’s expansion has raised the number of cabinet ministers to 23, with 16 MoS (independent charge) and 21 MoS, taking the total strength to 60—the maximum permissible. Minister for finance and parliamentary affairs Suresh Khanna said this was an effort to ensure that the government functioned in an exemplary manner.