Twelve ministers, including many seniors, on Wednesday resigned ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Cabinet reshuffle. The rejig, which is the first since Modi assumed office for a second term in May 2019, came as the government is facing severe criticism for its handling of the second wave of the coronavirus pandemic and rising prices of essential items in the country.
The exits of Information Technology and Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad, Health Minister Harsh Vardhan and Information and Broadcasting Minister Prakash Javadekar stood out during the revamp.
Prasad has been involved in a row with social media giant Twitter for its failure to abide by the IT rules in recent weeks. The rules came into effect in May. Four cases have been filed against Twitter in less than a month, marking an escalation in the row between the United States company and authorities in India.
Vardhan, who retained his position even in the second term of the BJP government, was among the…