BJP leader Pushkar Singh Dhami sworn-in as the new chief minister of Uttarakhand on Sunday. Dhami was administered oath of office by Governor Baby Rani Maurya at the Raj Bhavan in Dehradun.
BJP MLAs Satpal Maharaj, Harak Singh Rawat, Bansidhar Bhagat, and Yashpal Arya took oath as ministers in the new state cabinet.
Forty-five-year-old Dhami will be the youngest chief minister of the state, and replaces Tirath Singh Rawat, who resigned on Friday night within four months of taking charge from Trivendra Singh Rawat.
Dhami was elected as the leader of the BJP legislature party in the state on Saturday. Dhami's name was proposed by outgoing chief minister Tirath Singh Rawat and Pradesh BJP president Madan Kaushik and seconded by a number of MLAs, including former chief minister Trivendra Singh Rawat, Union minister Narendra Singh Tomar who was present at the meeting.
As Dhami takes over as the chief minister, his biggest challenge lies in leading the BJP to another victory and retaining power in Uttarakhand, where the party has been plagued by factionalism.
On Friday, Tirat Singh Rawat handed over his resignation letter to the governor Baby Rani Maurya past 11 PM, hours after returning from Delhi where he was summoned by the top BJP leadership on Wednesday.