Five ministers inducted into NDA cabinet

Puducherry: On Sunday, the first National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government was sworn into a governing coalition with five legislators serving in the cabinet of chief minister N Rangasamy. The five MLAs, three from Rangasamy’s All India NR Congress (AINRC) and two from ally Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), were taken the oath of office by lieutenant governor Tamilisai Soundararajan at the Raj Nivas.

Rangasamy’s cabinet now consists of six members, including the chief minister, who was sworn in alone on May 7, five days after the AINRC-led NDA won the single-phase Puducherry assembly elections on April 6.

The five legislators who were sworn in are A Namassivayam and Sai Sarvanan Kumar of the BJP, along with K Lakshminarayanan, C Dijeacoumar and Chandira Priyanga of the AINRC. The respective assembly constituencies for these five members are Mannadipet, Ossudu, Raj Bhavan, Mangalam, and Nedungadu. In fact, Priyanga is the first woman to serve as Union territory’s minister in more than four decades, according to the news agency.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi through Twitter congratulated the new ministers. ‘Best wishes to all those who took oath as ministers in Puducherry today. May this team work with determination and fulfil the aspirations of the wonderful people of Puducherry.’

Best wishes to all those who took oath as Ministers in Puducherry today. May this team work with determination and fulfil the aspirations of the wonderful people of Puducherry.

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) June 27, 2021

Earlier, the cabinet formation was delayed for various reasons. The day after his swearing-in, CM Rangasamy contracted Covid-19 and was hospitalized at a private hospital in Chennai. There was also delay in the process due to negotiations between the AINRC and the BJP.

There are 16 members of the coalition directly elected to the Puducherry legislature: 10 from the AINRC and six from the BJP. The former filed candidates for 16 seats, while the latter filed candidates for nine seats. There are 33 members in the assembly, 30 of whom are elected by voters and three nominated by the central government. Since the BJP is in power at the Centre, three of its MLAs were nominated, taking its total strength to nine in the House.

In February, the previous government led by Congress collapsed, months before it was to complete its five-year term. Since no party or coalition was able to form a government, Puducherry was placed under President’s Rule.