Around 11.30 am, Suvendu Adhikari took the oath in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union ministers Amit Shah, Nitin Gadkari, Rajnath Singh, and Shivraj Singh Chouhan. All BJP chief ministers, including Devendra Fadnavis, Himanta Biswa Sarma, and Yogi Adityanath, were present at the swearing-in ceremony.

Apart from Adhikari, five ministers – Dilip Ghoshas, Agnimitra Paul, Nisith Pramanik, Ashok Kirtania, and Kshudiram Tudu – also took oath. Among these five, Pramanik belongs to the Rajbanshi community, Kirtania is a Matua, and Tudu is from the Adivasi community.

PM Modi entered the swearing-in ceremony venue in an open car flanked by Adhikari and BJP state president Samik Bhattacharya. Notably, Suvendu Adhikari sported a saffron ‘fatua’ (shirt).

About 100 metres from the stage, Modi got out of the car and walked towards the dais. Once on the stage, he bowed down to thank the people of Bengal.

Modi greeted Makhanlal Sarkar, 97, who had accompanied Shyama Prasad Mukherjee during his last mission to Kashmir, opposing the now-shelved special status to the erstwhile state.

Soon after taking over as the new chief minister, Suvendu Adhikari went to Jorasanko Thakurbari, the residence of Rabindranath Tagore. “Without Rabindranath Tagore, you can’t think about Bengali culture. We started a new era by paying tribute to Tagore on his birth anniversary,” said Adhikari.

Adhikari’s parents could not attend the swearing-in ceremony as they are not well. Sisir Adhikari, the father of Suvendu Adhikari, said, “He is my second son among four. From childhood, he has shown leadership qualities, and he is a chief ministerial material. He is very cool and a very good organiser as well.”

Suvendu Adhikari’s mother, Gayatri Devi, said, “He is always very cool. I never scolded him as he was never naughty.” “Suvendu loves fried fish, especially Hilsa,” Gayatri Devi added.