Pramod Sawant took oath along with ministers in his 12-member cabinet. (File)
Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant has won
a floor test after his 2 am-oath ceremony on Monday night following tough negotiations to keep the BJP-led coalition running after the death of Manohar Parrikar. 20 lawmakers voted in favour of Mr Sawant, whereas 15 voted against him.
While 11 BJP, three Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party, three Goa Forward Party, and three independents supported the Chief Minister, 14 Congress lawmakers and an NCP MLA opposed him. Before the test, the BJP had claimed support of 21 legislators.
The strength of the 40-member house was reduced to 36 after the death of two lawmakers and the resignation of two Congress lawmakers.
As part of the recalibrated coalition after Manohar Parrikar - a popular chief minister who had the unstinted support of allies - there will be two deputy chief ministers in the tiny seaside state. MGP leader Sudhin Dhavalikar and Goa Forward's Vijay Sardesai will both be deputies to the BJP's Pramod Sawant.
Hours after the death of Manohar Parrikar on Sunday night, the BJP set upon the task of handling smaller parties who demanded more, including the top job, to stay on board. With the opposition Congress making a bid for power, based on its single largest party status, the BJP's meetings went on through the night and much of the next day, even as the party and the nation mourned Mr Parrikar.
Pramod Sawant was elected chief of the BJP legislature party, as a precursor to his takeover of the top post, just minutes after Mr Parrikar was cremated with full state honours.
A resolution finally came about after midnight on Monday, and shortly after, Pramod Sawant, 45, was sworn in as Goa Chief Minister along with 11 ministers.
The Congress accused Governor Mridula Sinha of denying it the chance to form a government, calling her an "agent of the BJP". The party, which had emerged the largest after the 2017 Goa polls, had written two letters to the Governor.
The BJP, two short of the Congress tally, has stabilized its coalition for now.
"We, being in the government, want this government to survive, but I must say this is a new beginning. You can never say how the future will go," Deputy Chief Minister Vijay Sardesai told NDTV.
"Parrikar was a moderniser and lit the torch of inclusive development many years ago in Goa. Goa is not like the rest of India. We have a unique identity and a cosmopolitan mixed population and it has to be inclusive development. Nothing else can survive here," he added.
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