Pema Khandu takes oath as Arunachal CM for 3rd term
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Pema Khandu took oath as the chief minister of Arunachal Pradesh for the third term in a row on Thursday. Chowna Mein also took oath as deputy CM of the northeastern state. The oath-taking ceremony saw attendance from top BJP leaders, including Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Health Minister JP Nadda.
BJP's legislative meeting and Khandu's election announcement
This swearing-in took place after Khandu was unanimously elected BJP Legislature Party Leader at a meeting on Wednesday following the party's big win in the recent assembly election. Out of the 60 assembly seats, the BJP secured an impressive 46 seats. The National People's Party (NPP), which is an ally of the BJP, won five seats, while the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) won three, the People's Party of Arunachal (PPA) got two, and Congress managed to secure only one.
Watch: Pema Khandu takes oath as Arunachal CM
Khandu's political journey and recent election victory
Former Congress leader Khandu first became CM in 2016, when he contested and won the seat (Mukto) of his late father, former Chief Minister Dorjee Khandu. That same year, 43 MLAs led by him moved from the Congress to the PPA, a BJP ally. He moved to the BJP again in December of the same year. He became chief minister in 2019 for a second time after winning the Mukto assembly seat.
