The appointment of a 14th minister in Chief Minister Vishnudev Sai's cabinet is now under judicial scrutiny in Chhattisgarh. A division bench of the Bilaspur High Court, hearing two separate petitions that call the appointment unconstitutional, has directed the state government to respond through an affidavit within four weeks. The order means the Sai government will now have to justify that its cabinet expansion was carried out strictly within constitutional limits.
How the dispute began
In August 2025, Chief Minister Vishnudev Sai expanded his council of ministers, administering the oath of office to three more MLAs. With their induction, the total number of ministers in Chhattisgarh climbed to 14. The moment that number became public, questions started swirling over whether a cabinet of that size fell within constitutional limits.
Two separate petitioners approach the court
Social activist Vasu Chakravarty was the first to challenge the move, filing a public interest litigation in the High Court. His petition invokes constitutional provisions to question the maximum permissible strength of the council of ministers, arguing that having 14 ministers in the state runs counter to constitutional norms. Soon after, Congress leader Sushil Anand Shukla filed a separate petition on the same issue, also contesting the legality of the 14th minister's appointment.
Court clubs both petitions together
Since both Vasu Chakravarty's and Sushil Anand Shukla's petitions raised the identical question, namely the constitutional validity of the 14th minister's appointment, the Bilaspur High Court decided to club the two matters and hear them jointly. The combined case was then taken up for a detailed hearing by the court's division bench.
Government now has four weeks to respond
Following the hearing, the High Court directed the state government to clarify its stand within the next four weeks. The state must place its position before the court through an affidavit. The next hearing in the case will be scheduled only after the government's response is submitted, leaving the fate of the 14th minister's post, and any possible cabinet reshuffle, undecided for now.
