July 8, 2021: At least 12 ministers have resigned ahead of an expected reshuffle in Modi’s cabinet. PM Narendra Modi is seeking to reinvigorate an administration heavily criticised for how it handled the coronavirus pandemic.
Twelve Indian government ministers have resigned, just hours before Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s expected cabinet reshuffle, with the aim of revamping its image after widespread criticism of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Health Minister Harsh Vardhan, whose response to the epidemic came under close examination, Education Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank, Chemicals and Fertilisers Minister D.V. Sadananda Gowda, Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad and Information and Broadcasting Minister Prakash Javadekar were among those who resigned on Wednesday.
The office of President Ram Nath Kovind said that they accepted his resignation on the advice of the Prime Minister. The 43 cabinet ministers and junior ministers are expected to be sworn in at a ceremony at the presidential palace on Wednesday, the local Press Trust of India news agency reported.
The 43 cabinet ministers and junior ministers are expected to be sworn in at a ceremony at the presidential palace on Wednesday, the local Press Trust of India news agency reported.
The Modi government is facing growing criticism for tackling this epidemic. This is the first cabinet reshuffle since coming to power for the second time in 2019. Vardhan, who was in charge of the Ministry of Health as well as the Ministry of Science and Technology, responded to the epidemic. Lack of hospital beds, medical oxygen and drugs have put a lot of pressure on health services. Since the onset of the epidemic, 400,000 corona virus deaths have been recorded in India. This is the third highest in any country. New cases are dropping to more than 400,000 a day in May, but authorities are preparing for another possible wave and trying to increase vaccines.
Prasad has been locked in a bitter dispute in recent months with foreign social media companies.
His ministry authored rule changes that require the firms to remove and identify the “first originator” of posts deemed to undermine India’s sovereignty, state security or public order.
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