BJP MLA Pushkar Singh Dhami on Sunday took oath as the 11th Chief Minister of Uttarakhand at a programme in Raj Bhawan, Dehradun. He becomes the third CM of Uttarakhand in four months.
Oath of office was administered on Dhami by Uttarakhand Governor Baby Rani Maurya.
Uttarakhand ministers Satpal Maharaj, Harak Singh Rawat, and other BJP leaders attended the swearing-in ceremony. Their presence at the swearing-in ceremony put a full stop to the speculation about a rebellion within the Uttarakhand BJP
BJP MLAs Satpal Maharaj, Harak Singh Rawat, Bansidhar Bhagat, Yashpal Arya, Bishan Singh Chuphal, Subodh Uniyal, Arvind Pandey, Ganesh Joshi, Dhan Singh Rawat, Rekha Arya, and Yatishwaranand took oath as ministers in the new State Cabinet
Dhami will hold the first Cabinet meeting today at 8 pm in Dehradun, confirmed the CM Secretariat.
After taking oath as the Chief Minister, Dhami told media, “I have been working among youngsters and I understand the issues very well. COVID has impacted their livelihood. We will try to make the situation better for them and will try to appoint youngsters for the vacant posts in the State.”
When asked about MLAs displeasure over the party choosing him for CM, he said, “I am younger in age. Everyone is experienced. For my party, who has given me this opportunity, it’s my duty to keep younger and older members together and take party’s and state’s work forward.”
“There are difficulties but resuming tourism and Char Dham Yatra in the state is absolutely necessary for us,” he added.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi also congratulated the newly-appointed Uttarakhand CM saying, “Congratulations to Shri @pushkardhami and all others who took oath today. Best wishes to this team as they work towards the progress and prosperity of Uttarakhand.”
Tirath resigns, Pushkar elected new CM
The consensus to name Pushkar Singh Dhami as the new Uttarakhand CM was reached after the BJP legislature party meet on Saturday in Dehradun. The meeting was called after Tirath Singh Rawat resigned from the post on Friday evening.
Union Minister Narendra Singh Tomar, who was the central observer for the meeting of MLAs, was also present there. Rawat submitted his resignation to Governor Baby Rani Maurya.
Pushkar Dhami is a two-time MLA from the Khatima constituency in Udham Singh Nagar district in the hill state. He becomes the third CM in Uttarakhand in nearly four months.
Tirath Singh Rawat, who is the Lok Sabha MP from Pauri Garhwal, took over as the Chief Minister on March 10 this year. To continue as the chief minister, he had to be elected to the state Assembly within six months since he was not an MLA.
