CM MAY NOMINATE RAMOOWALIA AS MLC SOON

LUCKNOW: Chief minister Akhilesh Yadav will have to take a call on getting minister for jail Balwant Singh Ramoowalia nominated as MLC in next four days, if he wants the latter’s continuation in his council of ministers.

Yadav had inducted Ramoowalia as a new face in the ministerial revamp he carried out on October 31, 2015. A minister has to become a member of any of two houses of state legislature within six months after assuming his/ her office. In Ramoowalia’s case, the deadline gets over on April 30.

As an election to a post of MLA/MLC is not due by April 30, the state government has been left with the only option of nominating Ramoowalia as an MLC to allow his continuation as a minister. Asenior party leader however exuded confidence that Ramoowali would continue as a minister.

As of now, there are six vacancies on nominated posts of MLCs. A face off has been witnessed between chief minister Akhilesh Yadav and governor Ram Naik over the past 10 months on the nomination of MLCs. Out of nine names sent by the state government for nomination as MLC, the governor on July 2, 2015 had approved only four names, asking the chief minister to send fresh nominations for five posts. After waiting for fresh names for nearly nine months ,the governor rejected the five names and returned the file to the state government on March 28, 2016.