GOI FILLS OUT CABINET, MANY PORTFOLIOS STILL ON

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 NEW DELHI 001083

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

DEPARTMENT FOR OPS, P (WEST),SCA (BLAKE)
NSC FOR CAMP

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV PREL PINR KDEM EAGR IN
SUBJECT: GOI FILLS OUT CABINET, MANY PORTFOLIOS STILL ON
HOLD

REF: A. NEW DELHI 1072

B. NEW DELHI 1062

C. NEW DELHI 1056


1. (SBU) Summary: The Indian Government announced 59
additional Ministers on May 28, bringing the total number to

78. However, no portfolios have been made public aside from
the six top spots previously announced (Ref B). All told
there are 33 Cabinet Ministers; ranking slightly below that,
seven Ministers of State with Independent Charge; and below
that, 38 Ministers of State. Apart from the new Foreign
Minister, S.M. Krishna, there are no surprises. Congress
Party leadership selected (or negotiated) carefully to ensure
that all caste/community, religious, gender and regional
concerns were addressed. However, a few interesting wrinkles
arise. "Young" members of parliament did not receive an
abundance of ministerial posts. The average age of the
Cabinet Ministers is 62, while the average age of the
remaining Ministers is 53. Regionally, Maharashtra and West
Bengal, two states that will hold state assembly elections
relatively soon, received nine and eight ministers
respectively. Uttar Pradesh received only five lower-level
minister posts despite its unexpectedly strong performance
for the Congress Party in the elections. There are five
Muslims total among the 78, two of whom are Cabinet rank,
both from Jammu and Kashmir. Overall it is a relatively
solid, status quo government. We expect portfolios will be
announced in the coming day or two. End Summary.

Ministers, Without Portfolios
--------------


2. (U) At a swearing in ceremony on May 28, the Indian
government officially expanded its Cabinet adding 59
Ministers. The first tranche of 19 Ministers were sworn in
on May 22 (Ref C) for a total of 78 Ministers. However, of
the 78, only six have officially been assigned portfolios
(Ref B). According to Embassy contacts, some of the 72
unassigned Ministers have been told by Congress Party
leadership what their posts will be. However, at the
swearing in ceremony today, no portfolios were officially
announced. Likely, Congress Party leaders are still
wrangling with their allies over the last few spots.

Youth - But not in the Cabinet
--------------


3. (U) While there are several "youth" names in the lower
level Minister of State posts, there are none among the top
33 Cabinet positions. Relatively well-known youngsters Jitin
Prasad, 35, and Joytiraditya Scindia, 38, both return as
Ministers of State. Media darling Rajasthan MP, Sachin
Pilot, 31, will be a Minister for the first time. The
youngest Minister is Agatha Sangma, 28, from Meghalaya. She
is a member of the Nationalist Congress Party and daughter of
former Lok Sabha Speaker P.A. Sangma. The most notable
"youth" name not among the 78 is Rahul Gandhi, whose thoughts
on the new government and his role in the Congress Party have
been reported septel (Ref A).

Regional Considerations
--------------


4. (U) Maharashtra received nine Ministerial slots, including
one for the disgraced former Chief Minister, Vilasrao
Deshmunk. He was forced to resign in the aftermath of the
Mumbai attacks. It is not merely Maharashtra's size - it
occupies 48 seats in parliament - that accounts for its heavy
representation in the Council of Ministers. The Congress
Party leadership no doubt has an eye on the coming assembly
elections in the state this September. Party leaders hope
the increase in attention from the central government and the

NEW DELHI 00001083 002 OF 002


enhanced visibility of these individuals bodes well for the
party during the state assembly polls.


5. (U) West Bengal, which received eight Ministerial posts,
will hold state assembly elections in early 2011. Seven of
the eight Ministers from West Bengal come from the new
Congress Party ally, Trinamool Congress. After crushing the
communists in West Bengal by winning 19 seats - up from only
one in the 2004 election - Trinamool Congress leader Mamata
Banerjee secured the prized Cabinet-rank Railways Ministry
for herself and six Minister of State positions for her party.


6. (SBU) Despite the Congress Party's surprise showing of 21
seats in Uttar Pradesh, the state did not receive any Cabinet
posts. Two Minister of State with Independent Charge (a
mid-ranking ministerial post) and three Minister of State (a
lower-ranking ministerial post) slots were allocated to Uttar
Pradesh members. Media noted that this is relatively little
for a state that sends the most members to the Lok Sabha, 80,
and was a key battleground success for the Congress Party.
Some analysts point out that "ignoring" this state is not a
good strategy if Rahul Gandhi is to succeed in his effort to
revive the party in the state to its glory days. Others
point out that two MPs from Uttar Pradesh, Sonia Gandhi and
Rahul Gandhi, hold more actual power than nearly all of the
33 Cabinet Ministers combined.

Solid, Status Quo Government
--------------


7. (SBU) Comment: Overall, the new Indian government
represents experience with a pinch of youth, but still
heavily tipped towards older politicians. Congress Party
President Sonia Gandhi and Prime Minister Manmoham Singh have
generally been able to choose the Ministers they want,
without the kind of harassment they faced from the myriad
allies in the previous government. We expect portfolios to
be announced shortly, even as early as this evening. End
Comment.
BURLEIGH