Jammu, Apr 29:  All arrangements have been put in place for the much-awaited reshuffle in the Mehbooba Mufti-led Jammu and Kashmir government which would take place here Monday with the BJP expected to bring in some new faces and drop some old ones including the Deputy Chief Minister Dr. Nirmal Singh.

J&K Governor N N Vohra will administer the oath of office and secrecy to those being inducted into the council of ministers at the convention centre at 12 noon, an invitation for the ceremony read.

Officials said the function is being held at the convention centre instead of Raj Bhavan as Jammu and Kashmir government has already shifted its base to summer capital Srinagar as part of the bi-annual ‘darbar move’, under which the government functions six months each in the twin capital cities.

The Civil Secretariat, the seat of Jammu and Kashmir government, and Raj Bhavan closed here on Friday and will reopen along with other move offices in Srinagar on May 07.

Speculation was rife that PDP ally BJP, besides filling up two vacancies, is likely to induct some new faces in the council of ministers by dropping others. A senior BJP leader said that the list was with BJP president Amit Shah who would hand it over to Deputy Chief Minister Nirmal Singh, who was in Delhi.

“We have no specific number of those who are being inducted into the cabinet or dropped from the cabinet. BJP national president Amit Shah and party general secretary Ram Madhav have the list which will be handed over to Singh either tonight or tomorrow morning,” the BJP leader said.

However, sources said that besides Dr. Nirmal Singh, Health Minister Bali Bhagat and Minister of State for Tourism and Education Priya Sethi are being dropped while Speaker Legislative Assembly Kavinder Gupta is being inducted and would most likely be the Deputy Chief Minister.

The saffron party had on April 17 asked all its nine ministers in the PDP-BJP government in the state to submit their resignations to enable bringing in new faces in the two-year-old Mehbooba Mufti cabinet.

The party, however, had not forwarded the resignations to the Governor.

It is pertinent to mention here that the deputy chief minister Dr. Nirmal Singh had not submitted his resignation. Sources said he submitted his resignation to party president Sunday evening when he was conveyed that he was being dropped from the Council of Ministers.

Dr Singh, sources said, maybe inducted as legislative assembly speaker.

Sources further said that BJP President, Sat Sharma, MLA Doda, Shakti Parihar, MLA Samba, Devinder Kumar Manyal and MLA Kathua, Rajiv Jasrotia, will be inducted in the council of ministers while as Sunil Kumar, who is presently MoS, will be elevated to cabinet rank.

The BJP had been under pressure ever since two of its ministers — Lal Singh and Chander Prakash Ganga — took part in a rally in support of those accused in the rape and murder of an eight-year-old girl in Kathua. The two ministers subsequently resigned.

There is high possibility that one or two ministers of state (MoS) could be elevated to the Cabinet rank, keeping in view their good performance, sources said.

It was not immediately known whether the PDP will also fill up the vacancy caused by the sacking of Haseeb Drabu as Finance Minister last month. Currently, the BJP has six cabinet ministers, including associate member Sajad Gani Lone, and three minister of state in the J&K government.

The state can have a maximum of 25 ministers, including the Chief Minister, out of which 14 portfolios are with the PDP and the remaining with the BJP.

Meanwhile, an official spokesman said Chief Secretary B B Vyas today chaired a meeting at convention centre to finalize the arrangements for the oath taking ceremony.

Later, he also took a round of the premises to oversee the preparations being made for the successful conduct of the ceremony.

Arrangements related to seating capacity, security, traffic regulation, public address system, sanitation, decoration, power supply and drinking water supply were discussed, the spokesman said.

He said Vyas directed the security agencies to ensure fool proof security in and around the venue.

Highly placed sources said that RSS played a major role in the reshuffle of BJP ministers.

It was, sources said, Jammu RSS that ensured that Deputy CM, Dr. Nirmal Singh, is dropped from the cabinet. The sources further said that RSS Cadre was not satisfied with the performance of Nirmal Singh and also his decision of effecting massive transfers in forest department just after one day of taking over the charge of Department.

It may be recalled that following the resignation by Choudhary Lal Singh, the deputy CM took the charge of Forest Ministry and transferred some fifty officers of the department only next day after taking over the charge.

Sources said that RSS cadre was upset over Deputy CM’s this decision for two reasons. One- How could he effect the transfers without first understanding the department. Two- RSS cadres insisted that by doing so the deputy chief minister had conveyed that former forest minister was incapable and thus tried to belittle a party colleague.

PDP may induct new faces too

Jammu: While the BJP is making massive reshuffle in its ministry, its coalition partner, PDP, too is likely to induct a few new faces.

Sources said that PDP may induct MLA Pulwama, Khaleel Bandh and MLA Sonawar, M Ashraf Mir in the Council of Ministers while

Sources further said that PDP may likely drop one incumbent minister.