Nayab Singh Saini takes oath as Haryana Chief Minister

Haryana Governor Bandaru Dattatreya administered the oath of office and secrecy to Nayab Singh Saini

Nayab Singh Saini took oath as the Chief Minister of Haryana on Thursday (October 17, 2024) at a ceremony in Panchkula which was attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, BJP bigwigs and NDA partners.

Haryana Governor Bandaru Dattatreya administered the oath of office and secrecy to Mr. Saini, who has become the Chief Minister for the second time. Ministers of Mr. Saini's Cabinet are being sworn in at the ceremony.

Haryana can have a maximum of 14 Ministers, including the Chief Minister. Massive security arrangements were made for the ceremony.

In the October 5 Haryana polls, the BJP secured an unprecedented third term in the state, winning 48 seats in the 90-member assembly. The Congress won 37 seats.

Mr. Saini, 54, was unanimously elected as the leader of the BJP Legislature Party in a meeting held at the party office in Panchkula on Wednesday (October 16, 2024).

In a departure from tradition, the BJP had declared that Mr. Saini would remain Chief Minister if the party returned to power in Haryana after the assembly polls.

Mr. Saini, an OBC face of the party, had replaced Manohar Lal Khattar as the chief minister of Haryana in March. He won the Ladwa assembly seat in the Kurukshetra district by a margin of 16,054 votes.

Mr. Saini's elevation from the Haryana BJP president to the Chief Minister in March came at a time when the party was facing anti-incumbency following Khattar's tenure of nine-and-a-half years and attacks from a buoyant opposition on farmers' issues, unemployment, Agnipath scheme, inflation, and law and order.

The BJP's gamble paid off with Mr. Saini leading the BJP to victory, defying exit poll predictions of a clean sweep for the Congress.

Published - October 17, 2024 10:30 am IST