A RAINBOW CABINET

One of the dominant themes of Mamata Banerjee’s assembly election campaign was the idea of an inclusive West Bengal that had something to offer to all its citizens, cutting across religion, caste, gender and social status. Public endorsement of it came as her party, the Trinamool Congress (TMC), won the election with a handsome 213 of the total 294 seats. ‘Inclusive Bengal’ now finds reflection in Mamata’s 43-member cabinet that took the oath of office on May 10. The team consists of nine women, seven Muslims, eight SC/ST MLAs and professionals from diverse fields—an actor, a cricketer, a theatre personality, a singer and two doctors. In all, there are 15 new faces.

Of the eight SC/ST ministers, four around their necks and red on foreheads—campaigning for the BJP did not go down well with the tribal people.