The new chief minister of the maiden BJP Government in Odisha will be sworn in on 12 June as suspense over the name of the new chief minister has become a topic of animated discussion across the coastal State.

Earlier the oath-taking of the new CM was scheduled on 10 June. However it has now been rescheduled to 12 June. As Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to attend the swearing-in ceremony, the event has been rescheduled to enable him to grace the occasion. The PM will be preoccupied with other programmes on 10 and 11 June, said Odisha BJP spokesperson Jatin Mohanty on Sunday.

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BJP ended the 24-year-old BJD Government in Odisha by securing 78 seats in 147-member House while BJD and Congress won 51 and 14 seats respectively. The saffron party emerged victorious in the Assembly polls without projecting a chief ministerial face. The party, banking on PM Modi’s charisma and whirlwind campaign, got the better of the regional party. The ruling BJD faced a strong anti-incumbency factor coupled with widespread anger against the dominance of former bureaucrat VK Pandian in governance and that acted to the added advantage of the BJP.