CM Tiwari does the balancing act

S.M.A. KAZMI

DEHRA DUN, MARCH 2: Senior Congress leader N.D. Tiwari was today sworn in as Chief Minister of Uttaranchal. Governor S.S. Barnala administered the oath of office to the former chief minister of Uttar Pradesh and 17 other ministers.

Tiwari created a balanced ministry by giving equal representation to supporters of Uttaranchal Congress unit chief Harish Rawat and his own. Rawat, who was an aspirant for the top slot, had raised a banner of revolt against the party high command�s choice of Tiwari as Chief Minister. Of the 17 ministers sworn in today, eight each belong to the Tiwari and Rawat camps while one legislator represents the Vijay Bahuguna camp.

The swearing-in ceremony was marked by much chaos and confusion. Due to incessant rains, the venue was changed from Pavillion Grounds to the ONGC Auditorium here. With everyone jostling for space, Congress workers had a tough time trying to squeeze themselves into the small auditorium.

Fourteen Cabinet Ministers and three Ministers of State were sworn in. The Cabinet ministers are Indira Hariydesh, Shoorveer Singh Sajwan, Narender Singh Bhandari, Tilak Raj Behad, Tej Pal Singh Rawat, Harak Singh Rawat and Navparbhata( all from the Tiwari camp), Hira Singh Bisht, Surinder Singh Negi, Mahinder Singh Mahra, Pritam Singh, Ram Parsad Tamta, Gobind Singh Kunjwal (all from the Rawat camp) and Mantri Parsad Naithani (Vijay Bahuguna group).

Out of the three Ministers of State sworn in, Kishore Upadhaya and Sadhu Rsam owe their allegiance to Harish Rawat while Amrita Singh Rawat, wife of former Union minister Satpal Maharaj, is Tiwari�s protege.