Bhubaneswar: Mohan Charan Majhi, a four-time tribal MLA from Keonjhar district, was sworn in as the chief minister of Odisha’s first BJP government at Janata Maidan on Wednesday. The Governor also administered the oath to his deputies, KV Singhdeo and Pravati Parida. This marks the first time in 25 years that Odisha will have two deputy chief ministers, a structure last seen in the Congress government led by Janaki Ballav Patnaik from 1995-98 with Hemananda Biswal and Basanta Biswal as deputy CMs.
Eight MLAs—Suresh Pujari, Rabinarayan Naik, Nityanand Gond, Krushna Chandra Patra, Prithviraj Harichandan, Mukesh Mahaling, Bibhuti Bhusan Jena, and Krushna Chandra Mohapatra—were sworn in as cabinet ministers. Additionally, five MLAs—Ganesh Ram Singh Khuntia, Suryabanshi Suraj, Pradeep Balasamanta, Gokula Nanda Mallick, and Sampad Kumar Swain—were sworn in as ministers of state with independent charge.