Senior Bishops of the Jacobite Church met with Keralam Chief Minister-designate VD Satheesan to extend their greetings ahead of his swearing-in ceremony. Supporters also gathered outside his residence as preparations took place for the oath-taking of the new government.
Satheesan is scheduled to be sworn in as Chief Minister of Keralam at 10 am at the Central Stadium in Thiruvananthapuram, alongside his full Council of Ministers. This event marks the return of the United Democratic Front (UDF) to power in the state following a decade.
Security measures have been intensified at the airport in anticipation of the arrival of Chief Ministers from Congress-ruled states and several other leaders, including Rahul Gandhi, who are expected to attend the ceremony.
The 20-member Cabinet, which will be sworn in alongside Satheesan, features senior Congress figures including Ramesh Chennithala, K Muraleedharan and KPCC chief Sunny Joseph. Leading members of the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) in the Cabinet include PK Kunhalikutty, PK Basheer, N Samsudheen, KM Shaji and VE Abdul Gafoor.
Other ministers named are Mons Joseph, Shibu Baby John, Anoop Jacob, CP John, AP Anil Kumar, T Siddique, PC Vishnunath, Roji M John, Bindu Krishna, M Liju, KA Thulasi and OJ Janeesh.
Satheesan announced that senior Congress leader Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan will serve as Speaker of the Assembly, with Shanimol Usman as Deputy Speaker. MLA Apu John Joseph has been appointed Government Chief Whip.
The swearing-in follows the UDF’s decisive victory in the 2026 Keralam Assembly elections, ending the Left Democratic Front’s (LDF) decade-long rule. Satheesan formally announced the Cabinet on Sunday and submitted the list of ministers to Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar at Lok Bhavan.
Addressing a press conference after the Governor’s meeting, Satheesan said, “Along with the Chief Minister, the full Cabinet will take the oath together after nearly six decades. Among the 63 Congress MLAs, there are many deserving leaders. Several deserving leaders have also been left out and remain outside the Cabinet. There is sadness and difficulty in that. Various limitations, criteria and social realities led to such decisions.”
He added that the government formation process was completed rapidly after extensive consultations within the Congress party and with coalition partners. “We have discussed with the coalition partners, we have interacted with all Congress leaders within the party, and within 24 hours, we have completed the entire process. This is the fastest in the history of Kerala,” he said.
Satheesan explained that social and regional balance, as well as representation for women and Scheduled Castes, were key factors in forming the Cabinet.
In the 2026 Assembly elections, the UDF won 102 seats in the 140-member House. The Congress became the single-largest party with 63 seats, while the IUML secured 22 seats. The LDF fell to 35 seats, and the BJP won three constituencies.
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