Saini takes oath as Haryana CM for second time

Chandigarh, Oct 17 (PTI) OBC leader Nayab Singh Saini on Thursday took oath as the chief minister of Haryana at a ceremony in Panchkula attended by a galaxy of NDA leaders, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Saini took oath in Hindi.

Ambala Cantt MLA Anil Vij, Israna MLA Krishan Lal Panwar, Badshahpur MLA Rao Narbir Singh, Tosham MLA Shruti Choudhary, Ateli MLA Arti Singh Rao and Radaur MLA Shyam Singh Rana were among those administered the oath of office by Haryana Governor Bandaru Dattatreya.

The BJP’s choice of the day for the swearing-in ceremony is significant as it is Valmiki Jayanti. Sage-poet Valmiki is the author of the Hindu epic Ramayana and a revered figure, especially among Dalits.

Haryana can have a maximum of 14 ministers, including the chief minister.

Chief ministers of several NDA-ruled states, including Uttar Pradesh, Assam, Meghalaya and Andhra Pradesh, were in attendance as were BJP president J P Nadda, Union ministers Rajnath Singh and Amit Shah.

Hours before the ceremony, Saini visited the Valmiki Bhawan and offered prayers at a gurdwara and the Mansa Devi temple in Panchkula.

He told reporters that the new BJP government will work towards taking Haryana forward at a rapid pace under the leadership of PM Modi.

The people of Haryana have shown faith in the Modi government’s policies, he said on the assembly poll results.

Replying to a question, Saini said the BJP’s ‘Sankalp Patra’ (poll manifesto) will be fully implemented.

“Look at our 2014 Sankalp Patra and 2019 Sankalp Patra, we implemented them completely and now this Sankalp Patra will also be implemented by our government,” he said.

In the recently concluded assembly polls, the BJP secured an unprecedented third term in Haryana, winning 48 seats in the 90-member assembly. Three Independents, including Hisar MLA Savitri Jindal, have also extended support to the party.

Saini, 54, was unanimously elected as the leader of the BJP legislature party in a meeting held at the party office in Panchkula on Wednesday.

In a departure from tradition, the BJP had declared that Saini would remain chief minister if the party returned to power in Haryana after the assembly polls.

Saini, an OBC face of the party, had replaced Manohar Lal Khattar as the chief minister of Haryana in March. He won the Ladwa assembly seat in Kurukshetra district by a margin of 16,054 votes.