The first ever BJP government in Odisha was scheduled to take the oath of office and secrecy on 10th June, but now it has been postponed to 12th June. The change in date comes while the party is yet to announce the name of the new CM.
Reportedly, the swearing-in ceremony was rescheduled to accommodate the presence of PM Modi at the event, as he is unable to travel to Odisha on 10th June. After taking oath today, PM Modi will have a hectic day tomorrow, and therefore he won’t be able to attend the ceremony in Bhubaneshwar.
Similarly, the meting of the BJP’s legislature party meeting, originally scheduled for 10 June, has also been rescheduled for 11 June. The new CM will be decided in this meeting. The swearing-in ceremony will be held after the meeting of the 78-member BJP’s legislature party in presence of central observers. BJP’s parliamentary board is likely to take a final call on it.
Several names including senior BJP MLA Suresh Pujari, Mohan Charan Majhi and KV Singh Deo are doing the rounds as the chief minister probables. Although Dharmendra Pradhan’s name was also being speculated, he took oath as a cabinet minister in the Modi government. Similarly another probable Ashwini Vaishnaw has also been retained in the union cabinet.
Amid the suspense over the name of the next chief minister, all preparations are on for the swearing-in ceremony at the Janata Maidan in Bhubaneswar.
BJP spokesperson and oath-taking ceremony in-charge, Dillip Mohanty on Sunday said that the swearing-in ceremony of the new Chief Minister of Odisha will now be held on June 12 and Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be present at the event.
“The oath-taking ceremony of the new Chief Minister of the newly-elected BJP Government in Odisha will now be held on June 12. PM Modi will be present for the oath ceremony,” said Mohanty.
“It is historic that the oath-taking ceremony will happen for the first time amongst the people of Odisha. It used to happen inside the governor’s house previously. This is happening after 2-3 decades. We are hoping that everyone in Odisha will take part in the event,” said Mohanty.
He further called it a government of the people and said that the people of the state will contribute to it. “PM Modi will be present and he will meet everyone. People are full of excitement that they will meet PM,” said Mohanty.
PM Narendra Modi will hold roadshow in Bhubaneswar on Wednesday evening before attending the oath-taking ceremony of the new Odisha CM at Janata Maidan.
Meanwhile, Biju Janata Dal (BJD) leader and close aide of caretaker Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik, VK Pandian on Sunday announced his retirement from active politics following the party’s defeat in Odisha assembly and Lok Sabha elections.
Pandian, an IAS officer of the 2000 batch, has served as private secretary to Naveen Patnaik for over two decades. In 2023, he joined the BJD after taking voluntary retirement from the bureaucracy.
The Biju Janata Dal suffered a defeat in the Odisha assembly polls at the hands of the Bharatiya Janata Party, putting an end to the 24-year-old reign of Naveen Patnaik.
The Bharatiya Janata Party secured 78 seats in the 147-seat assembly. The BJD secured 51 seats, way behind the majority mark of 74 and the Indian National Congress secured 14 seats.
In the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, also BJP performed well by securing 20 out of the 21 parliamentary seats in the state; the remaining one seat was won by Congress.
(With inputs from ANI)
