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Giridhar Gopal in Bhubaneswar
Orissa Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik plans to reshuffle and possibly expand his cabinet shortly to win over party dissidents, a senior Biju Janata Dal leader said on Wednesday.
"Patnaik has been upset ever since 13 BJD legislators cross voted in the recently held Rajya Sabha elections leading to the re-election of expelled party leader Dilip Ray," he said. Emboldened by his victory, Ray has threatened to split the party.
Patnaik heads a Biju Janata Dal-Bharatiya Janata Party coalition ministry. While originally his cabinet comprised of 16 BJD and nine BJP ministers, he dropped two BJD and one BJP ministers after they were accused of corruption last year. Two ministers have not been attending to their duties because of ill health.
To win over the dissidents, Patnaik is likely to reshuffle his cabinet and may even expand it, sources said. The chief minister is also likely to bring some new faces into his team.
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