Meghalaya CM expands cabinet; eight new ministers take oath

Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma inducted eight new ministers into his cabinet on September 16, following a major reshuffle in his coalition government. The move comes after eight of the previous 12 ministers resigned ahead of the changes.

NPP’s Timothy D Shira, BJP’s Sanbor Shullai, and UDP’s Metbah Lyngdoh were among those sworn in at a ceremony at Raj Bhavan. Other new ministers include NPP’s Wailadmiki Shylla, Sosthenes Sohtun, Brening A Sangma, HSPDP’s Methodious Dkhar, and UDP’s Lahkmen Rymbui.

Prior to the oath-taking, CM Sangma submitted the resignations of the outgoing ministers to Governor C H Vijayashankar. The resignations included NPP leaders Ampareen Lyngdoh, Comingone Ymbon, Rakkam A Sangma, and Abu Taher Mondal; UDP’s Paul Lyngdoh and Kyrmen Shylla; HSPDP’s Shakliar Warjri; and BJP’s AL Hek.

The resignations and subsequent reshuffle were carried out in line with Meghalaya’s constitutional limit of 12 ministers, including the Chief Minister. The outgoing ministers had held key portfolios: Ampareen Lyngdoh handled agriculture and law, Ymbon oversaw cooperation, Rakkam A Sangma managed education, Mondal led power, Paul Lyngdoh managed tourism, Kyrmen Shylla oversaw revenue and disaster management, Warjri was in charge of sports, and AL Hek handled animal husbandry.

The reshuffle is seen as an effort to streamline governance and reinforce coalition stability in the NPP-led Meghalaya Democratic Alliance government.