NEW DELHI -- Almost half of the political leaders inducted to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Council of Ministers are from the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, a right-wing Hindu organisation, and the ideological big brother of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party, The Telegraphreported today.
The Telegraph reported that BJP President Amit Shah updated RSS leaders about the leaders that he and Modi were finalising, and Shah went to RSS headquarters in New Delhi on the night before the swearing-in-ceremony to get ratification on the final list of ministers.
Nineteen junior ministers were inducted into Modi cabinet on Wednesday, and former Minister of State for Environment Prakash Javadekar was elevated to a Cabinet rank. The Modi government has said that merit, talent and expertise was the main selection criteria.
The Telegraph listed the following ministers as being connected to the RSS: Prakash Javadekar, who was elevated to the Cabinet rank, Faggan Singh Kulaste, Vijay Goel, Anil Madhav Dave, Jasnwantsinh Bhabhor, Mahendra Nath Pandey, Mansukh Mandaviya, Parshottam Rupala and P.P. Chaudhary.
Kulaste, who is now the Minister of State for Health & Family Welfare, reportedly opposed reservation for for those tribals who had converted to Christianity.
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