Dehradun, March 21 -- The state government on Friday carried out a cabinet expansion, with five MLAs taking oaths as ministers. Governor Lt Gen Gurmit Singh (retd) administered the oath of office and secrecy at a ceremony held in Dehradun. The newly inducted ministers are Bhimtal MLA Ram Singh Kaida, Rajpur MLA Khajan Das, Haridwar MLA Madan Kaushik, Roorkee MLA Pradeep Batra, and Rudraprayag MLA Bharat Singh Chaudhary. The expansion comes at a time when the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is preparing for the 2027 assembly elections and is aiming to secure a third consecutive term in the state. Political observers said the move is expected to help balance regional and caste equations, which are considered crucial in Uttarakhand's electoral landscape. Five ministerial positions had been lying vacant in the cabinet led by chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami. Of these, three posts remained unfilled after the BJP returned to power for a second consecutive term in 2022. Two additional vacancies arose following the death of minister Chandan Ram Das in 2023 and the resignation of Premchand Aggarwal in March 2025. Prior to the expansion, the cabinet included senior leaders such as Satpal Maharaj, Dhan Singh Rawat, Ganesh Joshi, Subodh Uniyal, Saurabh Bahuguna and Rekha Arya. Political experts believe that the induction of new ministers could strengthen the government's outreach programmes and strengthen their standing in their respective areas. The move is also seen as an attempt to accommodate senior party loyalists and address internal aspirations, as several MLAs had been lobbying for cabinet berths. BJP government's cabinet expansion in Uttarakhand appears to be a calibrated move to address caste and regional equations ahead of the 2027 Assembly elections, though regional imbalance continues to persist. While the inclusion of Ram Singh Kaida from Bhimtal has marginally improved representation from the Kumaon region, the cabinet continues to be dominated by leaders from Garhwal. Of the 12 ministers, including CM Dhami, four - Dhami, Saurabh Bahuguna, Rekha Arya and Kaida - are from Kumaon, while the rest belong to Garhwal region. At the same time, the BJP appears to have attempted a geographical balancing act by accommodating leaders from both plains and hill constituencies. Madan Kaushik from Haridwar and Pradeep Batra from Roorkee represent the plains, while Bharat Singh Chaudhary (Rudraprayag) and Kaida (Bhimtal) bring in hill representation. Khajan Das represents the Rajpur Road constituency in Dehradun. Following the expansion, nine out of the state's 13 districts now have representation in the cabinet. However, Pithoragarh, Chamoli, Uttarkashi and Bageshwar remain unrepresented, indicating that regional aspirations in some pockets are yet to be addressed. Caste considerations also appear to have played a key role in the cabinet expansion. Madan Kaushik comes from the Brahmin community, while Bharat Singh Chaudhary and Ram Singh Kaida are Rajput leaders. Khajan Das, a Scheduled Caste (SC) leader, adds representation to a community that constitutes around 18.76% of the state's population. Pradeep Batra, a Punjabi face, strengthens the party's outreach among urban trading communities. Political analyst SMA Kazmi said the expansion appears to be driven largely by electoral considerations. "There is very little time left for governance. This is a calculated move to address caste and regional equations ahead of elections," he said....