Pema Khandu has been chosen again as the leader of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) legislature party in Arunachal Pradesh, setting him up for another term as Chief Minister. This decision came ten days after the state assembly election results were announced on June 2.
Khandu expressed his gratitude on X (formerly Twitter), thanking the lawmakers for their support. “I am deeply honored to be elected as the Legislature Party leader of Arunachal Pradesh BJP. I humbly accept this responsibility to lead the BJP for another term of development-focused governance in line with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision,” he wrote. He also thanked the party members and workers for their efforts in securing a victory in the polls, and emphasized the need to work together for the state’s growth and to achieve an inclusive and developed India by 2047.
Feeling so honoured to be elected unanimously as the Legislature Party leader of @BJP4Arunachal.
With utmost humility, I accept the responsibility of leading the BJP to another term of development oriented governance in sync with the vision of Hon'ble Prime Minister Shri… pic.twitter.com/O14dt1OgsD
— Pema Khandu པདྨ་མཁའ་འགྲོ་། (@PemaKhanduBJP) June 12, 2024
The BJP legislators’ meeting, where Khandu was elected, took place in Itanagar and included central observers Ravi Shankar Prasad and Tarun Chugh, as well as Union Minister Kiren Rijiju. BJP state spokesperson Techi Necha announced Khandu’s election and stated that the swearing-in ceremony for the new cabinet would be held on Thursday at 11 am.
Later in the evening, Khandu will meet Governor KT Parnaik to stake his claim to form the new government. The swearing-in ceremony will be attended by BJP national president JP Nadda, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, and BJP’s national general secretary BL Santosh. They are expected to arrive in Itanagar on Wednesday evening.
Pema Khandu has been the Chief Minister since July 2016. Initially, he took oath as the head of a Congress government, within a few months, he and most of the Congress MLAs joined the Peoples’ Party of Arunachal (PPA) and formed a new government.
After being expelled from the PPA, Khandu and his supporters switched to the BJP in December 2016. This marked the third time he took the oath of office within a year.
Khandu began his second term as a BJP Chief Minister on May 29, 2019, after the BJP won 41 out of 60 seats in the assembly polls. In the latest elections, the BJP increased its tally, winning 46 seats out of 60.
The National Peoples’ Party (NPP), part of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) at the Centre, secured five seats, while the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) won three seats. The Peoples’ Party of Arunachal (PPA) got two seats, Congress won one, and three seats went to Independent candidates.
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, the convener of the North East Democratic Alliance, will also attend the swearing-in ceremony. Chief Ministers from other BJP-ruled states like Tripura and Manipur, as well as those from Nagaland and Meghalaya, where the BJP is part of the ruling coalition, are expected to be present.
Although the NPP has offered support to the new BJP government, it is unlikely that any NPP MLAs will be included in the new cabinet since the BJP has a clear majority on its own. Rungri Nabam, president of the Arunachal Pradesh unit of the NPP, confirmed this, stating that while they support the BJP government, the BJP’s majority means the NPP will likely not have representation in the cabinet.
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