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Mamata Banerjee takes oath as chief minister of West Bengal for 3rd time
Mamata Banerjee's oath taking ceremony, organised at Raj Bhavan, was a low-key event in view of the coronavirus pandemic.
Trinamool Congress (TMC) chief Mamata Banerjee took oath as the chief minister of West Bengal for her third consecutive term today after winning the high-stakes West Bengal Assembly elections on May 2. The oath-taking ceremony, being held at Raj Bhavan, was organised keeping in mind the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) protocols. It was a low-key event in which chief ministers of other states and leaders of other political parties were not invited.
Mamata Banerjee was wearing a white saaree and a shawl as she was sworn in as the CM of West Bengal by governor Jagdeep Dhankhar. She took the oath in Bengali.
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Soon after taking oath, the CM urged all political parties to ensure peace prevails in state. Governor Dhankhar, too, condemned the reports of post-poll violence in state and said that the government needed put an end to it. "Our first priority is to end horrendous post poll violence in state," he said. He had earlier called the law and order situation in state 'alarming' and summoned the state’s director general of police (DGP)
Reports of attacks on political workers after the TMC swept back to power in the state surfaced on Sunday, following which the Union ministry of home affairs (MHA) said sought a report on the alleged incidents from the West Bengal government.
“MHA has asked West Bengal government for a report on the post-election violence targeting opposition political workers in the state,” the ministry said in a tweet.
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After eight rounds of polling in the state, the votes were counted and results announced on May 2. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which had set a target of winning more than 200 seats out of the 294-member assembly, won 77 seats while the TMC won 213 seats.
The elaborate polling exercise was held amid a raging Covid-19 crisis in the country. On Wednesday, India reported 382,315 fresh cases of the virus, pushing the nationwide infection tally past 20.66 million. As many as 3,780 new fatalities were recorded in 24 hours, taking the country's death toll to 226,188.
The state, meanwhile, reported its highest single-day deaths of 107 Covid-19 patients on Tuesday, taking the toll to 11,744.
