Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema Khandu is set to be sworn in as the 11th Chief Minister of the State along with his council of ministers ahead of June 4.
The 2019 installation of a full-fledged BJP Government in Arunachal Pradesh is expected to be followed by another clean mandate, as 10 BJP candidates, including the incumbent CM Khandu, won unopposed out of the 60 MLA seats.
The swearing-in ceremony for the CM and his council of ministers will take place before the Parliamentary election poll results on June 4, with the assembly election results to be announced on June 2, 2024, suggest reliable insiders.
In 2019, despite having four women MLAs in the 60-seat assembly, the Council of Ministers did not include any women. However, the new government is anticipated to be more gender-inclusive. For the past two decades, the Arunachal cabinet has lacked female representation, despite some women being elected from various constituencies.
The last female cabinet minister was Komoli Mossang in the 1990s. This trend is expected to change with the inclusion of Dasanglu Pul, the Hayuliang MLA from the remote Anjaw district bordering China and Myanmar, in the new ministry.
Pul, who won uncontested from her constituency, is serving her third term as an MLA. She first entered the assembly in a 2016 by-election following the death of former CM Lt Kalikho Pul. Dasanglu Pul has served as an advisor to the Women and Child Development Department and is well-equipped to handle any ministerial role assigned to her.
The passing of the Women Reservation Bill in Legislative Assemblies and Parliament, pending final formalities, signals a move towards greater gender representation. Arunachal Pradesh, a patriarchal society with significant female participation in Panchayat and assembly elections, is expected to make strides in breaking gender discrimination barriers.
In Panchayat elections, the state has seen substantial representation of women at the grassroots level. Since gaining full statehood in 1987, only one woman has represented Arunachal Pradesh in the Rajya Sabha, and 15 women have been elected to the state assembly.
As Pema Khandu prepares to take office again, the inclusion of women in his cabinet is anticipated to mark a significant step towards gender inclusivity in Arunachal Pradesh’s political landscape.
