Twelve Indian Ministers, including the Health Minister, have resigned on Wednesday following a terrible surge in Covid-19 cases.
Gatekeepers News reports that the country’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the resignations as part of a major reshuffle ahead of seven state elections in 2022.
Health Minister Harsh Vardhan, 66, came in for particular criticism during the rise in infections between April and May.
India’s health service was overwhelmed as hospitals began to run out of beds, medical oxygen and drugs.
The spread of the virus was attributed to the new virus variants and the government was also blamed to have allowed mass religious and political gatherings between January, February and March.
Gatekeepers News reports that Ravi Shankar Prasad, Minister for Law and Justice and Information Technology, also resigned.
The 66-year-old who is a close ally of the PM is, however, expected to get an important role in Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ahead of the state elections.
The others who resigned include Prakash Javadekar, Minister for the Environment, Forests and Climate Change as well as Information, Broadcasting and Heavy Industries.
Minister for Education, Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank also quit.
