Pushkar Singh Dhami has been appointed as the new chief minister of Uttarakhand after the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) held a crucial legislature meet at the state headquarters in Dehradun.
“I will take the entire party along and work for the benefit of the state," the 45-year-old two-time BJP MLA Dhami told reporters on Saturday.
"My party has always kept me under its wings, just like my mother. I consider myself fortunate enough that the party gave me this opportunity. I pledge to serve people even in the remote areas of the state. We'll discuss the change in Cabinet later," Dhami said, according to ANI.
Dhami will take oath as Uttarakhand's 11th chief minister at 6 pm on Sunday, 4 July, and newly appointed Uttarakhand cabinet ministers will also take the oath with him.
Dhami, along with some BJP leaders, met Governor Baby Rani Maurya on Saturday afternoon at Raj Bhawan in Dehradun.
Advocate & Two-Time BJP MLA
Dhami was born in a small village in Pithoragarh district. His father used to serve in the army.
He finished his early education in the village and went to Lucknow University for higher studies.
According to Hindustan Times, Dhami, who is an advocate by profession and an MLA from the Khatima constituency of Udham Singh Nagar district, has not held a ministerial position in the state cabinet.
However, he has a strong hold over the youth of the state, having been the chief of the party's Uttarakhand youth wing – the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha – from 2002 to 2006.
He has also been the vice-president of the Uttarakhand BJP in the past.
Dhami is considered to be close to Bhagat Singh Koshyari, a former Uttarakhand Chief Minister and now the governor of Maharashtra and Goa. He was previously an advisor to Koshyari when the latter was the CM.
Apart from this, he is also reported to be close to former state president and Nainital MP Ajay Bhatt.
Dhami's Mother, Wife React to News
Meanwhile, speaking to news agency ANI from Khatima, Dhami's mother Vishna Devi said on Saturday, "I'm very happy, but I feel a little sad that his father is not with us to see him (Pushkar Singh Dhami) become the chief minister of Uttarakhand. He worked very hard for this."
His wife, Geeta, expressed gratitude towards the party's top leaders and said, "I want to thank the party's high command, PM Modi, Amit Shah, Rajnath Singh, and JP Nadda, and the people of Khatima. He came from a middle-class family and is aware of the problems of the people."
Tirath Singh Rawat's Resignation
Dhami's selection as the new chief minister comes after incumbent CM Tirath Singh Rawat submitted his resignation late on Friday.
Rawat's resignation came after just four months of his taking charge as the CM – when the Uttarakhand Assembly elections were only a year away. However, the former CM, who had replaced Trivendra Singh Rawat, was still not a member of the Legislative Assembly.
(With inputs from ANI and Hindustan Times.)
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