UDF government in Kerala: VD Satheesan will take oath as Chief Minister today, Rahul-Kharge will also attend.

Delhi, 18 May. The swearing-in ceremony of the Congress-led UDF government in Kerala will be held at the Central Stadium in Thiruvananthapuram on Monday. VD Satheesan will take oath as Chief Minister at the ceremony. The event will formally mark the return of the UDF to power in Kerala after a decade, following its decisive victory in the assembly elections. Several senior party leaders, including Congress MPs Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and Congress national president Mallikarjun Kharge, as well as chief ministers of Congress-ruled states are likely to attend the event.

On Sunday, a day before he was sworn in as the 13th Chief Minister of Kerala, Satheesan met renowned Cardinal Moran Mor Baselios Cleemis, also known as Cleemis Bava. The Cardinal currently serves as the Major Archbishop-Catholicos of the Syro-Malankara Catholic Church and the Major Archbishop of Trivandrum. The new government will assume office with a 21-member cabinet, which will also include the Chief Minister. According to political sources, Congress is likely to get 11 ministerial posts, including the post of Chief Minister.

Meanwhile, coalition partner Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) is likely to get five ministerial berths in the new government. The names being considered on priority include PK Kunhalikutty, KM Shaji, N Shamsuddin and Parakkal Abdullah. However, according to reports, differences have emerged within the party regarding the inclusion of PK Bashir. A section of the party is raising its objections to his elevation. The final composition of the Cabinet ahead of the swearing-in ceremony on Monday is expected to give a clear picture of the power-sharing arrangement within the newly-elected UDF government.