Jharkhand Chief Minister-elect Hemant Soren is likely to take oath on Thursday. Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi and former Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal may attend swearing in. Top leaders of the INDIA bloc, including Congress's Rahul Gandhi and RJD's Tejashwi Yadav, may attend the swearing-in ceremony of the Hemant Soren government on November 28.
In a stunning comeback, Hemant Soren's JMM-led alliance on Saturday stormed to power in Jharkhand for a second consecutive term, winning 56 seats in the 81-member assembly, despite an all-out blitz by the BJP-led NDA, which managed only 24 seats. Soren retained Barhait seat by defeating BJP's Gamliyel Hembrom by a margin of 39,791 votes.
JMM contested 43 seats and won 34, the party's highest-ever tally in its history. The Congress got 16 seats, RJD four, and the CPI (ML) secured two seats in the INDIA bloc. As per the arrangement, RJD may get one ministerial berth.
Meanwhile, preparations are underway for the oath-taking ceremony. Soren on Sunday met Governor Santosh Kumar Gangwar and staked claim to form the government, soon after leaders of the INDIA bloc in the state unanimously elected him as the legislature party leader.
Soren will be sworn in as the 14th chief minister of Jharkhand, which was carved out of Bihar on November 15, 2000. He will be sworn in as the chief minister for the fourth term. The majority mark in the state assembly is 41 seats.
