Pushkar Singh Dhami to take oath today as Uttarakhand CM for second term

Dehradun: Pushkar Singh Dhami will take oath as the 11th Chief Minister of Uttarakhand for a second term today at Dehradun's Parade Ground in the presence of the top BJP brass.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and BJP president JP Nadda are expected to attend Mr Dhami's swearing-in ceremony.

Along with Mr Dhami, his cabinet will also be administered the oath today.

Renowned social workers, litterateur, writers, and seers of temples and mutts have also been invited.

The party said it is expecting a participation of "40-50 thousand" people.

"Small poojas have also been organized at worker shakti kendras by workers before arriving at the (oath ceremony) venue," Uttarakhand BJP media in-charge Manveer Chauhan said.

Ending long suspense over the Chief Minister's face, the BJP on Monday elected Mr Dhami as the leader of the legislature party in Uttarakhand.

The legislative party meeting was led by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Union Minister of State for External Affairs Meenakshi Lekhi.

The BJP's dilemma on the choice of a chief minister was caused by Mr Dhami's loss in Khatima, a seat he had been winning since the 2012 Assembly polls. Mr Dhami had lost to Congress candidate Bhuwan Chandra Kapri from Khatima by a margin of 6,579 votes.

Mr Dhami will have to get elected to the state assembly within six months.

The BJP won 47 seats in the 70-member Assembly in the recently concluded state elections. With this, the BJP has become the first party ever in Uttarakhand's 21-year-old history to return to power in consecutive elections.