Ten Cabinet ministers, including eight first-time legislators, were inducted into the Bhagwant Mann cabinet on Saturday.
The Governor of Punjab, Banwarilal Purohit, administered the oath of office and secrecy to the newly inducted Cabinet ministers in the presence of Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann at Punjab Raj Bhawan.
These Cabinet ministers include Harpal Singh Cheema (MLA from Dirba), Dr Baljit Kaur (MLA from Malout), Harbhajan Singh (MLA from Jandiala), Dr Vijay Singla (MLA from Mansa), Lal Chand (MLA from Bhoa), Gurmeet Singh Meet Hayer (MLA from Barnala), Kuldeep Singh
Dhaliwal (MLA from Ajnala), Laljit Singh Bhullar (MLA from Patti), Bram Shanker Jimpa (MLA from Hoshiarpur) and Harjot Singh Bains (MLA from Sri Anandpur Sahib).
Of these only Cheema and Hayer have been re-elected as Members of the Legislative Assembly. They both were MLAs in the previous Assembly as well.
In a balancing act, of these ten ministers, five represent the Malwa region, four Majha and one legislator is from Doaba. Four of these ministers Cheema, Harbhajan Singh, Dr Kaur and Lal Chand represent reserve constituencies.
Of these only Cheema and Hayer have been re-elected as Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs). They both were MLAs in the previous Assembly as well.
The Leader of Opposition in the previous Assembly, Cheema (48) is an advocate by profession Dr Kaur (46) is an eye surgeon and daughter of Sadhu Singh, who was the Aam Aadmi Party’s Member of Parliament from Faridkot from 2014 to 2019.
While Dr Singla (52) is a dentist by profession, Harbhajan Singh (53) was an excise and taxation officer in the Punjab government before he took voluntary retirement to enter politics.
Bains (31) is a founder member of AAP Punjab and has completed his education at the London School of Economics. Hayer, 32, is a mechanical engineer by profession and became active in politics with the beginning of the India against Corruption movement.
A former member of CPM, Lal Chand ( 52) is in politics for about two decades and has been fighting against illegal mining. Bhullar ( 41) is an agriculturist and a grain commission agent by profession.