Suvendu sworn in as Bengal’s first BJP chief minister, NDA shows strength

Kolkata: bjp Suvendu Adhikari was sworn in as the first saffron chief minister of Bengal on Saturday along with five cabinet ministers, marking his maiden tenure in Bengal. Narendra Modi Join a crowd of more than a hundred thousand people at Calcutta’s Brigade Parade Ground to witness the former left and later centrist bastion make a sharp rightward turn.BJP and RSS veteran Dilip Ghosh, designer-turned-politician Agnimitra Paul, former Union junior minister Nisith Pramanik, another RSS old-timer Khudiram Tudu and Matua face Ashok Kirtaniya are the other five ministers who took oath.The new cabinet will hold its first meeting on Monday. The cabinet may be expanded next week.The choice of ministers shows a careful balance between regions – a nod to women (without whose support the BJP would have struggled to defeat the Trinamool) and an acknowledgment of the RSS’s solid organizational support for the BJP (another key factor in the party’s landslide victory).

Prime Minister pays tribute to Jana Shakti of West Bengal

Modi arrived at the Maidan in an open car along with Adhikari and state BJP president Samik Bhattacharya, as chants of “Modi, Modi” rang out across the brigade. After the swearing-in ceremony, a visibly emotional prime minister knelt before the crowd, his forehead touching the ground.Modi later posted onHe posted a second message congratulating the new prime minister. He wrote, “Congratulations to Shri Suvendu Adhikari Ji on being sworn in as the Chief Minister of West Bengal. He has left a mark as a leader who was closely connected with the people and understood their aspirations at close range. I sincerely wish him a fruitful tenure in the future.” Adhikari shared the post and in his reply said, “Your blessings and guidance will light up my path and inspire me to contribute to Viksit Bharat by creating Viksit Bengal.”“The ceremony, which coincided with the birth anniversary of Rabindranath Tagore, blended symbolism and power projection. Modi took off his shoes before garlanding Tagore’s portrait and later touched the feet of Makhan Lal Sarkar, a 97-year-old BJP veteran and aide to Syama Prasad Mookerjee, whose ideological legacy shaped the rise of the BJP.The gesture is highly symbolic of the BJP CM’s ascension to the top post in the state more than seven decades after its ideological forerunner, the Bharatiya Janata Party, departed from Bengal under the leadership of Mukherjee.Present at the 100×60 feet podium to witness the historic event were Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Defense Minister Rajnath Singh, party state president Nitin Nabin, his predecessor JP Nadda, Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari, 21 governors of NDA states and their deputies, along with Smriti Irish and veteran actor Mithun Chakraborty and other former ministers.The proceedings began at 11.30 pm with Governor Ravi issuing the “appointment order” of Adhikari as the new chief minister of Bengal. Adhikari, wearing a saffron kurta and white dhoti, took the oath in Bengali. After taking the oath, he bowed to Prime Minister Modi and Shah and greeted the distinguished guests. UP CM Yogi Adityanath took off his saffron scarf and tied it around Adhikari’s shoulders, eliciting loud cheers from the crowd.After the ceremony, Adhikari went to Cholasanko Thakubari to pay tribute to Rabindranath Tagore on his 166th birth anniversary. Later, he reached the PWD tent at Maidan where he held a 45-minute lunch meeting with the DGP and Kolkata Police Commissioner to discuss law and order in the state.In the evening, Adhikari visited Mukherjee’s residence in Bhowanipur, the headquarters of the Bharat Sevashi Ram Sangha in Baligong and the Kalighat temple.