Kolkata (West Bengal), May 8: Subhendu Adhikary took oath as the first Bharatiya Janata Party Chief Minister of West Bengal on Saturday, marking a historic political shift in the state. Governor C.V. Ananda Bose administered the oath of office and secrecy to Adhikary and his council of ministers here.
The ceremony followed the BJP’s majority win in the recently concluded Assembly elections. Earlier, Adhikary, MLA from Nandigram and Leader of Opposition in the outgoing Assembly, was unanimously elected leader of the BJP Legislature Party.
Along with the Chief Minister, 18 cabinet ministers, 10 ministers of state with independent charge, and 7 ministers of state were sworn in. Raj Bhavan sources said the new council draws representation from North Bengal, Jangalmahal, South Bengal and Kolkata, with focus on women, SC, ST and OBC leaders.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, BJP National President Nitin Nabin and chief ministers of several BJP-ruled states attended the high-profile event. Outgoing Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and her colleagues from TMC did not attend the ceremony.
Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad Sangma was also in Kolkata on Saturday to attend the swearing-in ceremony. Several senior political leaders from across the country were present for the event.
In his first address, Adhikary thanked the people of Bengal and said his government’s priorities would be “corruption-free governance, restoration of law and order, rapid industrialization, and protection of Bengal’s culture and traditions.” The cabinet’s first meeting was scheduled for Wednesday evening at Nabanna.
The Governor called for cooperative federalism and urged the new government to work for “peace, development and harmony.”
Security was tightened across Kolkata for the ceremony. Portfolios of the new ministers are expected to be announced tonight, officials said.
