Oath-Taking Date For BJP’s Maiden Govt In Odisha Postponed Amid CM Suspense

Bhubaneswar: The swearing-in ceremony of the new BJP government in Odisha will now be held on June 12, a top party leader said on Sunday.

The oath-taking ceremony, which was earlier slated to be held on June 10, will take place on June 12, BJP’s Odisha in-charge Vijaypal Singh Tomar told reporters.

The swearing-in ceremony has been shifted amid suspense over the new Chief Minister of the first BJP government to be formed in the state.

Top contenders for CM post include Dharmendra Pradhan, K V Singh Deo, Mohan Majhi and Manmohan Samal. Senior BJP leader and newly-elected MLA Suresh Pujari is also among the main contenders. Pujari, who represented Bargarh in the last Lok Sabha, was elected from Brajarajnagar Assembly constituency in the just-concluded elections.

BJP’s state president Manmohan Samal has told the media to wait for two more days for a clear picture on the party’s CM pick to emerge.

After returning from New Delhi, Samal said the parliamentary board of BJP would take a decision on the chief minister at its meeting.

It may be noted that the BJP won comfortable majority in 147-member Assembly by bagging 78 seats in the elections that concluded recently. The saffron party had gone to the elections under the leadership of Narendra Modi without projecting a chief minister candidate.

Sources said new Union Ministers, chief ministers of several states and other dignitaries will attend the oath-taking ceremony of the BJP ministry to be held at Janata Maidan in Bhubaneswar.