1 Brahmin, 2 Dalits and 3 OBCs… Yogi government balances 2027 equations with cabinet expansion

• by Desk
• 2026-05-10 18:17:00

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath's cabinet was expanded on Sunday. Governor Anandiben Patel administered the oath of office to Bhupendra Chaudhary, Krishna Paswan, Hansraj Vishwakarma, Manoj Pandey, Kailash Rajput, and Surendra Diler as new ministers at a swearing-in ceremony held at Lucknow's Lok Bhavan on Sunday. In this major expansion, Bhupendra Chaudhary and Manoj Pandey were sworn in as cabinet ministers.

Meanwhile, Krishna Paswan, Kailash Singh Rajput, Hansraj Vishwakarma, and Surendra Diler were sworn in as Ministers of State. In addition , Somendra Tomar and Ajit Singh Pal were also sworn in. CM Yogi appointed Ajit Singh Pal and Somendra Tomar as Ministers of State with independent charge. Among the new faces, one is a Brahmin, three are OBCs, and two are Dalits.

The swearing-in comes a day after CM Yogi Adityanath met Anandiben Patel at Jan Bhavan, putting to rest speculation about a long-awaited reshuffle in the Uttar Pradesh ministry ahead of the 2027 assembly elections.

1. Bhupendra Singh Chaudhary: Former state president of the Uttar Pradesh BJP and one of the prominent Jat leaders in western Uttar Pradesh. He hails from Moradabad and has long been active in the RSS and BJP. He first became a Member of the Legislative Council (MLC) in 2016 and remains an MLC. After the BJP government was formed in 2017, he became Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Panchayati Raj and in 2019, he became Cabinet Minister for Panchayati Raj.
2. Manoj Pandey: He is an MLA from the Unchahar assembly seat in Rae Bareli. He served as a cabinet minister in the Samajwadi Party government from 2012-17. He was elected to the assembly on an SP ticket in 2022. He has also served as the SP's chief whip in the assembly. Manoj Pandey is a prominent Brahmin leader from Awadh and Purvanchal.
3. Krishna Paswan: She is the BJP MLA from the Khaga assembly seat in Fatehpur district. Beginning her struggling career as an Anganwadi worker, Krishna Paswan is considered one of the district's most prominent Dalit leaders. She has served as a four-time MLA and a two-time district panchayat member. She is considered a trusted female face of the UP BJP.
4. Surendra Diler: He is a BJP MLA from the Khair assembly seat in Aligarh district. He is one of the BJP's well-known young Dalit leaders. He is the son of Rajveer Singh Diler, a former BJP MP from Hathras. His grandfather, Kishan Lal Diler, was a six-time MLA and a four-time MP. His father, Rajveer Singh Diler, was a one-time MP and a one-time MLA.
5. Hansraj Vishwakarma: He is a Member of the Legislative Council (MLC) from the BJP. With a strong influence on backward class politics, Hansraj Vishwakarma has been active in politics for the past 34 years. He began his political career at the booth level in 1989. He also played an active role in the Ram Mandir movement. He is considered to have played a key role in the BJP's landslide victory in Varanasi in the 2019 Lok Sabha and 2022 Assembly elections.
6. Kailash Singh Rajput: Won the Tirwa assembly seat as a BJP candidate in 1996. He then contested and won the 2007 election on a BSP ticket. He rejoined the BJP in the 2017 assembly elections and won, ultimately winning the assembly seat. He also won the Tirwa assembly seat in Kannauj district in 2022.

Attempts to appease Brahmins, Dalits and OBCs

Currently, there are seven Brahmin ministers in the cabinet, including Deputy Chief Minister Brajesh Pathak. A Brahmin-reserved seat in the Yogi cabinet fell vacant after former minister Jitin Prasada became an MP and a central minister. The party has chosen Manoj Pandey for this position. He will be sworn in on Sunday.

The government has attempted to send a message to the Dalit community by including Surendra Diler and Krishna Paswan in the cabinet, two ministers from the Dalit community. Previously, the Yogi government had eight ministers from the Dalit community, including Cabinet Minister Baby Rani Maurya. There are a total of 86 reserved seats in the UP Assembly. Of these, 84 are reserved for SCs and two for STs. Of these, 67 Dalit MLAs belong to the BJP.

Places have been made for women in the cabinet. There are 51 women MLAs in the UP Assembly. Of these, 30 are from BJP, 4 from Apna Dal (S) and 1 from RLD. There are a total of 5 women ministers in the Yogi government. The Constitution Amendment Bill required to implement women reservation could not be passed in the Parliament. BJP is making this an issue against the opposition among women. To strengthen this further, Krishna Paswan has been given a place in the cabinet. From the backward class, Deputy CM Keshav Prasad Maurya, Cabinet Ministers Swatantra Dev Singh, Dharampal Singh, Rakesh Sachan, Anil Rajbhar, Dara Singh Chauhan and Chaudhary Laxmi Narayan are cabinet ministers.

Cabinet ministers Ashish Patel, Om Prakash Rajbhar, and Sanjay Nishad from allied parties are also from the backward classes. There are five ministers of state with independent charge and six ministers of state. Three faces from the backward classes have been included in the cabinet expansion taking place on Sunday. These include former state president Bhupendra Chaudhary, Hansraj Vishwakarma, and Kailash Rajput from the Jat community.