Hemant Soren Begins Second Innings as Jharkhand Chief Minister

Ranchi, Dec 29 (PTI) JMM leader Hemant Soren took oath as Jharkhand chief minister for a second time on Sunday at a grand ceremony attended by a galaxy of opposition leaders and regional satraps, in a show of unity that could be a harbinger of a broad-based anti-BJP alliance amid the uproar over the new citizenship law.

Attired in white kurta-pyjama ensemble and a Nehru jacket, the 44-year-old tribal leader was sworn in as the 11th chief minister of the state by Governor Droupadi Murmu.

"Let us all unite and take Jharkhand to new heights, working for the all-round development of all sections of society. Let us begin a new era of peace and prosperity," Soren said shortly after taking oath of office and secrecy at the Mohrabadi Ground here.

Among those in attendance were Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, TMC boss and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, her Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh counterparts Ashok Gehlot and Bhupesh Baghel, CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury, CPI leader D Raja, DMK leader M K Stalin, his sister Kanimozhi, and RJD's Tejashwi Yadav.

They smiled broadly and shook hands at the bonhomie- filled event that heralded the advent of a JMM-Congress-RJD government, after the opposition coalition snatched yet another state from the BJP, barely months after its remarkable performance in the Lok Sabha elections.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi took to Twitter to congratulate Soren and assured all possible support from the Centre for the state's growth.

Former assembly speaker and Congress leader Alamgir Alam, Jharkhand PCC president Rameshwar Oraon and RJD MLA Satyanand Bhokta were the other three ministers who took oath after Soren.

It is the second term for Soren, who had been a deputy chief minister and chief minister between 2009 and 2013.

Alam and Oraon are first-time ministers, while Bhokta had been the agriculture minister in the BJP-led NDA governments between 2000 and 2005, before joining the RJD.

Meanwhile, the first meeting of the Hemant Soren Cabinet decided to convene a three-day session of the assembly from January 6.

Senior JMM MLA Stephen Marandi, who was named as pro-tem speaker, will conduct the proceeding till a regular Speaker is elected.

Asked who would be the Speaker of the assembly, a Congress leader told PTI: "Besides Marandi, former minister and senior Congress leader Rajendra Prasad Singh appears to be in the race for Speaker's post."

Marandi will administer oath to MLAs over the three days, and since the alliance convincingly won the assembly polls, Soren has not been asked to prove majority on the floor of the House.

NCP MLA Kamlesh Kumar Singh said the party will lend unconditional support to the new government in Jharkhand.

"The NCP is a part of the UPA at the national level. It is natural that we support the Hemant Soren government. The NCP will support the new dispensation's developmental work," Singh said.

The huge gathering at the Mohrabadi Ground clapped and cheered for the political bigwigs, but it was Mamata Banerjee who drew the loudest applause. "Bengal ka tigress aa gai (The Bengal tigress is here)," shouted someone in the crowd, as Banerjee entered.

In the just-conducted Assembly elections, the JMM- Congress-Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) alliance triumphed over the BJP, winning 47 seats in the 81-member House.

Four other MLAs - three from the Jharkhand Vikas Morcha (Prajatantrik) and one from the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) have also extended support to the three-party coalition.

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