Kolkata: Suvendu Adhikari took oath as the first Chief Minister of West Bengal from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Saturday. West Bengal Governor RN Ravi administered the oath of office and secrecy to Adhikari at a grand ceremony held at the Brigade Parade Grounds in Kolkata.
Along with Adhikari, five other MLAs — Dilip Ghosh, Agnimitra Paul, Ashok Kirtania, Nisith Pramanik, and Kshudiram Tudu — were sworn in as Cabinet Ministers.
The high-profile event was attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Chief Ministers of several BJP and NDA-ruled states, BJP national president JP Nadda, and other senior party leaders.
The swearing-in ceremony was held on Pochishe Boishakh, coinciding with the 165th birth anniversary of Nobel Laureate Rabindranath Tagore.
In the recently concluded West Bengal Assembly elections, the BJP secured a decisive victory with 207 seats in the 294-member Assembly, ending the 15-year rule of the Trinamool Congress, which was reduced to 80 seats.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated Suvendu Adhikari on assuming the office of Chief Minister and extended his best wishes for the new government.
