Mohan Charan Majhi, 52, is Odisha’s next chief minister, gets two deputy CMs

Mohan Charan Majhi will be assisted by two deputy chief ministers, Kanak Vardhan Singh Deo and Pravati Parida

Updated on: Jun 11, 2024, 21:01:28 IST

By Debabrata Mohanty

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BHUBANESWAR: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Tuesday named 52-year-old Mohan Charan Majhi as the next chief minister of Odisha. Majhi, the third tribal to be the state’s chief minister after Hemanand Biswal and Giridhar Gamang, will take oath on Wednesday afternoon.

BJP MLA Mohan Charan Majhi will be the new chief minister of Odisha, said defence minister Rajnath Singh after a meeting to select leader of the BJP legislative party (ANI)

Also Read: Mohan Majhi to be BJP's first chief minister in Odisha | 5 things to know about CM-elect

Majhi was elected from the Keonjhar Sadar, a reserved constituency for tribals in the mining belt of Keonjhar. Only two of the state’s 14 other chief ministers, Hemanand Biswal and Giridhar Gamang, have been tribals who make up over 22% of Odisha’s population.

He was unanimously selected as the leader of the BJP’s legislative party at a meeting held at the BJP’s Bhubaneswar party office in the presence of Union defence minister Rajnath Singh and Union forest and environment minister Bhupinder Yadav.

Majhi, who was the chief whip of the BJP in the previous assembly, is a post-graduate who hails from the Santhal tribe and is counted among the erudite tribal voices in Odisha.

Back in 2009, Majhi was among the first to raise his voice against the excess mining of iron ore and manganese from the Joda and Barbil area of the district that led to an investigation by retired Supreme Court judge justice MB Shah (retd).

Renowned wildlife and RTI activist Biswajit Mohanty, who was one of the whistleblowers of the mining scam, said Majhi launched a concerted effort to investigate the scam. “He played a key role in uncovering of the scam that ran into billions of crores of rupees,” said Mohanty.

Two deputy CMs

Former minister and erstwhile royal of Patnagarh estate, Kanak Vardhan Singh Deo who won from Patnagarh assembly seat in Bolangir and Pravati Parida, a senior woman leader from Nimapara seat in coastal Puri district will be the two deputy chief ministers.

Also Read: Meet Pravati Parida, BJP leader set to be Odisha's first female Deputy CM

Shortly after Majhi’s name was announced, BJP workers gathered at the party’s State headquarters in Bhubaneswar where the legislative party meeting was held, raising slogans hailing Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and the newly appointed CM.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Debabrata Mohanty
Debabrata Mohanty is a senior assistant editor of Hindustan Times who works as state correspondent from Odisha covering the state's politics, governance, public policy, natural disasters, environment and its society for close to three decades. With his long years of reporting from the state capital of Bhubaneswar, Mohanty has been known as one of the most experienced and credible journalists covering Odisha for the national English dailies. His reporting combines on-ground detail with deep institutional knowledge detailing the state's changing politics, governance issues, administrative reforms and the functioning of its public institutions. He has regularly reported on issues ranging from legislative developments and public policy implementation. Politics is his core areas of expertise as he closely tracks Odisha's political landscape, including the rise and transformation of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the Biju Janata Dal (BJD), the two principal political parties in Odisha. His long association with the state's political establishment enables him to write on contemporary developments in a larger political context. Mohanty takes a deep interest in writing human interest stories, environmental issues and documenting the impact of cyclones, floods, heatwaves, and other climate-related events in one of the most disaster-prone states. His coverage extends to public health, governance reforms and stories on accountability of government institutions. Before joining Hindustan Times, Mohanty worked with The Indian Express, Mail Today, and The Telegraph, where he covered at least six general elections and as many assembly elections. In 2007, he was selected for the prestigious Chevening Young Indian Print Journalist Programme at the University of Lincoln, United Kingdom, where he received advanced training in print journalism. In 2009 he won the Press Institute of India-International Committee of Red Cross award on conflict reporting for his on-ground reportage of 2008 Kandhamal riots.Read More

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