Mohan Charan Majhi will be Odisha’s new chief minister, as decided during the BJP legislature party meeting on Tuesday. The saffron party’s first leader for the state’s top job, he will take oath at the swearing-in ceremony on June 12 that will also be attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Majhi, 52, will also get two deputies — first-time MLA Prabhati Parida and six-time legislator KV Singh Deo. He was elected to the state legislative assembly from the Keonjhar seat reserved for STs, and is a strong tribal face.
In his first comments to the press, the CM-designate said he will work towards safeguarding the rights of the tribal community and ensure their development. “We will work to safeguard the rights of the tribal people. We will make all the necessary facilities available to them like drinking water etc…For making ‘Viksit Bharat’, their development is also very important…” he told news agency ANI.
Majhi said the “double engine” government in Odisha will now work as per the BJP’s ‘Sankalp Patra’ and fulfil the promises made to the people of the state. “Today, the double engine government has come into the state and now we will work according to the ‘Sankalp Patra’, we proposed for Odisha… Whoever will do good work, the party will definitely give them a post like CM, that I have got today… The government will function properly, we are 100 per cent sure… Our party will work to give justice to the people of Odisha… and we will fulfil the promises made to the people of the state…” he said, also thanking the people of Odisha and Hindu deity Jagannath for giving him the opportunity to serve.
His name came up after Union ministers Rajnath Singh and Bhupendra Yadav, who were the observes at the BJP legislature party meeting, discussed with all senior leaders and the newly elected MPs and MLAs. After the announcement, Singh congratulated Majhi and called him a “young and dynamic karyakarta“.
“Delighted to announce that Shri Mohan Charan Manjhi has been elected unanimously as the leader of Odisha BJP Legislature Party. He is a young and dynamic party karyakarta who will take the state forward on road to progress and prosperity as the new Chief Minister of Odisha. Many congratulations to him,” he said in a post on X.
He added: “Also, it has been decided that two Deputy Chief Ministers will be designated to head the new State Government. Shri KV Singh Deo and Smt. Pravati Parida will serve the state as Deputy Chief Minister. Congratulations to them!”
The meeting to select Majhi was held a week after the announcement of the assembly poll results. The BJP got a majority in the 147-member House by winning 78 seats.
Majhi will lead Odisha after the 24-year rule of the BJD’s Naveen Patnaik. A number of names were in the running for the CM’s post after Sambalpur MP Dharmendra Pradhan became a minister in the third Narendra Modi-led Union Cabinet. But, as usual, the BJP leadership threw a surprise at the last minute.
Top contenders were Suresh Pujari, who was elected from the Brajarajnagar assembly seat; Manmohan Samal, who is the state BJP president; and CAG of India Girish Murmu, who also served as the lieutenant governor of Jammu and Kashmir and Modi’s former principal secretary when he was the Gujarat CM.
However, several party leaders had also anticipated a surprise as the party made similar announcements in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh. “Everything is possible in Odisha as the BJP is a worker-driven party,” said a senior party leader.
