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BJP names central observers for 4 states, govt formation to begin soon
Sadanand Shet Tanavade, the Goa BJP chief, said the next cabinet is expected only after Holi, which in Goa is celebrated for five days starting March 18
The Bharatiya Janata Party parliamentary board on Monday named central observers and co-observers for the election of the leader of the legislative party in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Manipur and Goa where the party retained power in the recently concluded assembly elections.
The appointment of the central observers is the BJP’s first step towards government formation in the four states. The central observers take the call on picking the leader of the legislative party following consultations with legislators and other leaders in the respective states.
Union home minister Amit Shah and former Jharkhand chief minister Raghubar Das will be the observer and the co-observer respectively for Uttar Pradesh, Union defence Minister Rajnath Singh and minister of state for external affairs Meenakshi Lekhi will oversee the selection work in Uttarakhand.
Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman and union minister of law Kiran Rijiju will be the observer and co-observer respectively for Manipur and union minister for agriculture Narendra Singh Tomar and union minister of state, L Murugan will be in charge of Goa.
In Uttarakhand where chief minister Pushkar Dhami lost the election, the legislative party is expected to meet soon to decide on the state leadership.
Goa chief minister Pramod Sawant was re-elected but there are murmurs that legislators and party workers are pushing the central leadership to pick a new chief minister.
The BJP emerged as the single largest party, winning 20 seats. The MGP, which fought the Goa elections in an alliance with the Trinamool Congress (TMC), won two seats.
Goa BJP president Sadanand Shet Tanavade said that the oath ceremony for the next cabinet is likely to be held only after Holi, which in Goa is celebrated for five days starting March 18.
“The swearing-in has been delayed. Because we are a national party we are dependent on the central leadership. There has been no official intimation of the arrival of the central leaders,” Tanavade said hours before the central party leadership named the central observers.
