GUWAHATI: Assam is set to witness its first Cabinet expansion under the new BJP-led NDA government, with the swearing-in ceremony of newly inducted ministers scheduled to be held on June 5 at 12:45 PM at Jyoti-Bishnu Antarjatik Kala Mandir in Guwahati.
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The oath-taking ceremony for the ministers-designate in the Council of Ministers of Assam will take place on Friday afternoon. The event will be attended by senior government officials, political leaders and invited guests.
According to reports, eight to nine legislators are likely to be inducted as Cabinet ministers, while two Ministers of State may also be sworn in. The expansion is expected to include a mix of experienced leaders and first-time ministers from different regions of the state.
The Cabinet expansion comes weeks after Himanta Biswa Sarma was sworn in as Chief Minister for a second consecutive term following the BJP-led NDA's victory in the recently concluded Assam Assembly elections.
Along with Sarma, four ministers had taken oath on May 12- Ajanta Neog, Rameswar Teli, Atul Bora and Charan Boro.
While Neog, Bora and Boro were members of the previous council of ministers, Teli returned to state politics after serving as a Union minister in the Centre.
In the 126-member Assam Assembly, the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) secured a decisive mandate, winning 102 seats. The BJP won 82 seats, while its allies, the Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) and the Bodoland People's Front (BPF), secured 10 seats each.
The NDA government is now serving its third consecutive term in Assam, having first assumed office in 2016 under former Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal.
The names of the ministers to be inducted are yet to be officially announced.