'No place for Shinde Sena': MP criticises NDA for excluding Shiv Sena (UBT) from NITI Aayog reshuffle

In a sharp jab at the Narendra Modi-led central government on Wednesday, Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Priyanka Chaturvedi said that no representative of the party's Eknath Shinde faction had been appointed to the NITI Aayog during the most recent reshuffle.

Priyanka Chaturvedi described the NITI Aayog as an "immoral power grab" and stated that she can "understand" leaders' exclusion from CM Eknath Shinde's Sena.

On Tuesday, the NDA government reinstated the NITI Aayog, appointing four full-time members and 15 Union ministers who were either ex-officio members or special invitees.

The recent reshuffle saw an increase in the number of special invitees from five to 11. While individuals from Shinde's Shiv Sena were excluded, allies like HD Kumaraswamy (JDS), Jitan Ram Manjhi (HAM), Rajiv Ranjan Singh (JDU), KR Naidu (TDP), and Chirag Paswan (LJP) were granted positions.

In addition to NDA allies, special invitees include BJP ministers like Nitin Gadkari, JP Nadda, Annapurna Devi, Virendra Kumar, Jual Oram, and Rao Inderjit Singh.

According to an official notification, Prime Minister Narendra Modi remains the chairperson of NITI Aayog, with economist Suman K Bery retaining the vice-chairperson role.

The government think-tank will still employ scientist VK Saraswat, agricultural economist Ramesh Chand, paediatrician VK Paul, and macroeconomist Arvind Virmani full-time. Union Ministers Rajnath Singh (Defence), Amit Shah (Home), Shivraj Singh Chouhan (Agriculture), and Nirmala Sitharaman (Finance) will be the four ex-officio members.

The Niti Aayog reshuffle comes after a change in the Union Council of Ministers after the 18th Lok Sabha Elections.