Logo

Logo

Biplab Kumar Deb sworn-in as first BJP Chief Minister of Tripura

In a historic event, Biplab Kumar Deb was on Friday sworn-in as the first BJP Chief Minister of Tripura at…

Biplab Kumar Deb sworn-in as first BJP Chief Minister of Tripura

Prime Minister Narendra Modi waves to supporters along with newly appointed Tripura Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb (R) and other cabinet ministers during the swearing-in ceremony of Tripura legislative assembly at Assam Rifles ground in Agartala, the capital of northeastern state of Tripura, on March 9, 2018. (Photo: AFP)

In a historic event, Biplab Kumar Deb was on Friday sworn-in as the first BJP Chief Minister of Tripura at a grand ceremony in capital Agartala that was attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and party chief Amit Shah.

From being a gym instructor to conquering a state that was a fortress of the Left for 25 long years, Biplab Kumar Deb was administered the oath of office and secrecy by Governor Tathagatha Roy as non-Left government assumes office in the state for the first time in a quarter of a century.

Along with Biplab Kumar Deb, the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) tribal leader Jishnu Debbarma took oath as the deputy Chief Minister.

Advertisement

Debbarma is yet to be elected as an MLA as polling in his Charilam (Scheduled Tribe) constituency was postponed due to the death of the CPM candidate. The election will now be held on Monday.

Along with Modi, Shah and central ministers, conspicuous by his presence was former Chief Minister of the state Manik Sarkar, who headed the Communist Party of India (Marxist) CPI-M government in the state for over two decades.

The BJP and the  Indigenous People’s Front of Tripura (IPFT) swept the February 18 polls, winning 43 of the 59 seats.

The BJP secured 35 seats in the 60-member Assembly and the IPFT, a tribal-based party, eight.

The CPI-M got 16 seats while the Left Front partners — Communist Party of India, Forward Bloc and Revolutionary Socialist Party — besides once main opposition Congress drew blank.

Meanwhile, all the outgoing ministers, including Chief Minister Manik Sarkar, are leaving their official residences and checking into MLA hostel, party offices and rented houses.

Advertisement