Naveen Patnaik Takes Oath As Odisha Chief Minister For Record Fifth Term

Biju Janata Dal supremo Naveen Patnaik, one of the longest-serving chief ministers in India, managed to retain the state for the fifth consecutive term in the recently concluded elections in Odisha.

Outlook Web Bureau

Updated on: 29 May 2019 1:01 pm

Naveen Patnaik was sworn in as the chief minister of Odisha for a record fifth term on Wednesday after his party Biju Janata Dal (BJD) secured 112 of the 147 seats in the state assembly elections held simultaneously with the Lok Sabha polls.

Patnaik was administered the oath of office and secrecy by Governor Ganeshi Lal in a grand ceremony at the Idco Exhibition Ground in Bhubaneswar.

Odisha Governor Ganeshi Lal had on Sunday invited Chief Minister and BJD president Patnaik to form the next government in the state. The Governor appointed 11 Cabinet ministers and nine Ministers of State on the recommendation of the chief minister.

The 72-year-old BJD supremo Patnaik, one of the longest-serving chief ministers, managed to retain the state for the fifth consecutive term in the recently concluded Lok Sabha election in the state.

The Cabinet Ministers who will take oath are Ranendra Pratap Swain, Bikram Keshari Arukha, Naba Kishore Das, Pratap Jena, Prafulla Kumar Mallick, Niranjan Pujari, Sudam Marndi, Susanta Singh, Tukuni Sahu, Arun Kumar Sahoo and Padmanav Behera

The state ministers include Ashok Chandra Panda, Samir Ranjan Dash, Jyoti Prakash Panigrahi, Dibya Shankar Mishra, Premananda Nayak, Raghunandan Das, Padmini Dian, Tusharkanti Behera and Jagannath Saraka.

Apart from chief minister's elder brother and businessman Prem Patnaik, sister and noted writer Gita Mehta, around 7,000 dignitaries including captains of industries attended the swearing-in ceremony.

Elections for the 147 seats in the Odisha Legislative Assembly and 21 Lok Sabha seats were held simultaneously in the state.

Patnaik won from two Assembly segments, his home turf Hinjili under the Aska Lok Sabha seat in southern Odisha and Bijapur in the Bargarh Lok Sabha seat in western Odisha.

BJD retained 12 of the 21 parliamentary seats in the state. The party secured 112 seats in the 147-member Odisha Assembly. BJP won 23 seats and Congress managed to win nine seats. An independent and CPI(M) won one seat each.

Patnaik, the son of former chief minister Biju Patnaik formed the BJD after quitting the Janata Dal in 1997. He became the chief minister for the first time in the year 2000 and his party had been in alliance with the BJP till 2009.

(With inputs from agencies)