Tribal leader Mohan Charan Majhi was sworn in as the first BJP Chief Minister of Odisha on Wednesday in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, several of his council of ministers and chief ministers of nine BJP-ruled states at the famous Janata Maidan.
Odisha Governor Raghubar Das administered the oath of office and secrecy to the chief minister, two deputy chief ministers, eight cabinet ministers and five ministers of state (independent charge)
Over a lakh people from across the state congregated at the Janata Maidan to witness the swearing in ceremony attended by a host of BJP central leaders.
Former Odisha Chief minister and BJP President Naveen Patnaik was also present.The two Deputy Chief Ministers who were sworn in are Kanak Vardhan Singh Deo and Pravati Parida.
The cabinet ministers who were sworn in are Suresh Pujari, Rabi Narayan Nayak, Nityananda Gond, Krushna Chandra Patra, Prithivraj Harichandan, Dr.Mukesh Mahaling, Bibhuti Bhusan Jena, Dr.Krushna Chandtra Mohapatra.
Five Ministers of state (Independent) were also sworn in on the occasion. They are Ganesh Ram Singkhuntia, Suryabanshi Suraj, Pradeep Bala Samant,Gokulananda Mallik and Sampad Chandra Swain.
The BJP won 78 of the total 147 Assembly seats in the 2024 election dislodging the 24 years rule of the BJD government headed by Naveen Patnaik.
Later three independent MLAs also joined the BJP taking the total strength of the party to 81 in the Assembly.
This was the first BJP government in the political history of Odisha.In the past the BJD-BJP coalition government was formed for two consecutive terms in the 2000 and 2004 elections.
The BJD however, snapped the alliance with the BJP prior to the 2009 Assembly elections and since then BJD was ruling the state winning the 2009, 2014 and 2019 elections with an absolute majority.
Mohan Charan Majhi will be the third Tribal Chief Ministers in the state. Earlier, in 1989 and 1999 Hemananda Biswal and Giridhar Gomango from Congress had ruled the state for brief periods as Chief Minister after the then Chief Minister J B Pattnaik was asked to step down from the post by the Congress High Command on three occasions, once in 1989 and twice during 1999- 2000.(UNI)<>