VD Satheesan will take oath as CM in Kerala today, many leaders including Kharge-Rahul will be present.

Thiruvananthapuram: About two weeks after the declaration of assembly election results in Kerala, a new government is finally going to be formed. The United Democratic Front (UDF) government will take oath in Thiruvananthapuram on Monday. Congress leader VD Satheesan will take the oath of office and secrecy as the new Chief Minister of the state. A total of 21 ministers will be included in the cabinet led by him. On Sunday, Satheesan reached Raj Bhavan and handed over the final list of the Council of Ministers to Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar.

Mallikarjun Kharge will be present in the program

Many senior leaders including Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge and Lok Sabha MP Rahul Gandhi will be present at the swearing-in ceremony of the new government. According to sources, Wayanad MP Priyanka Gandhi is also likely to attend the programme.

Along with VD Satheesan, the names of Ramesh Chennithala and KC Venugopal were also in discussion in the race for the post of Chief Minister, but the Congress leadership ultimately expressed confidence in Satheesan. The Congress Legislature Party elected him as its leader on 14 May. At the same time, Ramesh Chennithala, who was in the race for the post of Chief Minister, has also been given important responsibility in the cabinet.

How much time did it take to finalize the list of ministers?

UDF had achieved great success in the assembly elections by winning 102 out of 140 seats. However, several rounds of talks took place within the alliance regarding government formation and selection of the Chief Minister. There was continuous brainstorming for about three days in deciding the list of ministers. The final list was agreed upon on Sunday evening after several meetings between the leaders of Congress and allies.

VD Satheesan said that while forming the cabinet, special attention has been given to social and regional balance. He said that efforts were made to accommodate many experienced leaders, but due to limited numbers, some senior leaders could not be included in the cabinet. According to him, many aspects have to be considered while deciding representation in a big party like Congress.

Important participation of Indian Union Muslim League

Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) has also got important participation in the new government. Five MLAs of the party will be given ministerial posts. These include PK Kunhalikutty, N Shamsuddin, KM Shaji, PK Bashir and VE Abdul Ghafoor. Apart from this, leaders like K Muraleedharan, Sunny Joseph, AP Anil Kumar and PC Vishnunath have also got a place in the cabinet.

The swearing-in ceremony will be held at the Central Stadium in Thiruvananthapuram at 10 am on Monday, in which Chief Ministers of many states and prominent leaders of the opposition alliance can also attend.