Champai Soren and 10 Other Leaders Sworn in as Ministers in Hemant Soren’s Jharkhand Government

Former Chief Minister Champai Soren and ten other leaders of the JMM-led coalition took oath as ministers in Hemant Soren’s government in Jharkhand on Monday. Champai Soren had resigned from the post of CM on July 3, paving the way for JMM executive president Hemant Soren to become the 13th Chief Minister of Jharkhand on July 4. Jharkhand Governor C P Radhakrishnan administered the oath of office and secrecy at a function in the Raj Bhavan, attended by senior politicians and government officials.

The 12-member cabinet, which includes the Chief Minister, saw the inclusion of new faces such as Congress’s Jamtara MLA Irfan Ansari, Mahagama MLA Deepika Pandey Singh, and JMM’s Latehar MLA Baidynath Ram. Ram’s exclusion from the previous Champai Soren cabinet had been controversial, with Ram terming it an “insult.” Other ministers who retained their positions include Congress leaders Rameshwar Oraon and Banna Gupta, along with JMM leaders Mithilesh Kumar Thakur, Hafizul Hasan, Dipak Birua, Bebi Devi, and RJD’s Satyanand Bhokta.

Earlier in the day, Hemant Soren’s government secured a vote of confidence in the assembly, despite a walkout by opposition members. Hemant Soren was released from jail on June 28 after being granted bail by the Jharkhand High Court in a money laundering case linked to an alleged land scam. He had resigned as CM before his arrest on January 31 by the Enforcement Directorate.

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