Who Will Be Odisha's First BJP CM? Rajnath Singh, Bhupender Yadav To Oversee Selection, These Contenders In Race

After the swearing-in ceremony for the third term of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is now focused on selecting the Chief Minister of Odisha.

In the recently held Assembly elections, the BJP won 78 of the 147, securing a majority and is set to form a government in the state for the first time ousting Biju Janata Dal (BJD).

The party has appointed Union Cabinet Ministers Rajnath Singh and Bhupender Yadav as central observers to oversee the selection of the CM in Odisha.

Earlier, Dharmendra Pradhan was widely expected to be chosen as the CM of Odisha. However, after he took oath as the Cabinet Minister, other names have started emerging.

The frontrunner is Brajarajnagar MLA-elect Suresh Pujari, who returned from New Delhi on Monday (10 June), as per The New Indian Express.

The other contenders in the race are BJP's Odisha president Manmohan Samal, former state president K V Singh and Keonjhar MLA-elect Mohan Majhi.

According to the BJP's Odisha in-charge, Vijay Pal Singh Tomar, the legislature party meeting will be held on Tuesday to finalise the name of the CM.

The new government is expected to take oath on 12 June after a proposed victory roadshow of PM Modi as the BJP also won 20 of the 21 Lok Sabha seats in Odisha.