Amid resentment among those who have been dropped or not given ministerial post in the new Punjab cabinet, state’s Congress in-charge Harish Rawat on Sunday said that the main aim of the exercise was not induct young faces into the new team and “strike a social and regional balance”.

Speaking to media after expansion of Punjab cabinet, Rawat said that those who could not find place in the new ministerial team  will be accommodated in the government setup and organisation.

“Those who could not be made ministers today will be accommodated in the government setup and the organisation. This exercise has been done to bring in young faces and strike a social andregional balance,” Rawat said.

Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi earlier today expanded his cabinet by inducting 15 ministers into his new team. Among 15 ministers, eight had held ministerial post in the previous Amarinder Singh-led cabinet while seven are new faces.

The oath-taking ceremony took place at Raj Bhavan in Chandigarh. Governor Banwarilal Purohit administered the oath of office to the new ministers.

The Congress MLAs who took oath today include Brahm Mohindra, Manpreet Singh Badal, Tript Rajinder Singh Bajwa, Sukhbinder Singh Sarkaria, Rana Gurjeet Singh, Aruna Chaudary, Razia Sultana, Vijay Inder Singla, Bharat Bhushan Ashu, Randeep Singh Nabha, Raj Kumar Verka, Sangat Singh Gilzian, Pargat Singh, Amarinder Singh Raja Warring, Gukrirat Singh Kotli.

As many as five legislators — Rana Gurmit Singh Sodhi, Sadhu Singh Dharamsot, Balbir Singh Sidhu, Gurpreet Singh Kangar and Sunder Sham Arora — who were ministers in the Amarinder Singh-led cabinet have lost their ministerial berth.

The expansion that comes months ahead of the Assembly polls in the state has already triggered discontent among those who have been left out and also over inclusion of tainted former minister Rana Gurjeet Singh.

Earlier today, a section of Congress leaders from the state wrote to party’s state unit chief Navjot Singh Sidhu demanding that Gurjeet Singh should not be included. The leaders also demanded that the cabinet berth may instead be filled up “by giving representation to a clean Dalit leader”.

In another development, ministers in the previous Amarinder cabinet — Balbir Singh Sidhu and Gurpreet Singh Kangar — asked what was their fault that they had been dropped.