At Hemant Soren's Oath Ceremony In Jharkhand, A Show Of Opposition Unity

Once Jharkhand's youngest Chief Minister, Hemant Soren took oath for a second time today at the head of alliance with the Congress and Lalu Yadav's Rashtriya Janata Dal. The oath ceremony of the 11th Chief Minister of Jharkhand turned out an opportunity to showcase opposition unity - much like the oath of HD Kumaraswamy in Karnataka in May last year - following the huge majority won by the alliance. Sankalp Diwas (day of resolution) as the event was dubbed, was attended by most opposition leaders.

Mr Soren shared stage with Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, CPM's Sitaram Yechury, RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav, DMK's MK Stalin and other opposition leaders as Governor Droupadi Murmu administered the oath of office at Ranchi's Morabadi Ground. Congress leaders Alamgir Alam , Rameshwar Oraon and RJD legislator Satyanand Bhokta took oath as ministers.

"I attended the swearing in ceremony of CM Hemant Soren Ji & ministers from the Congress party in Ranchi today. I'm confident that the new Govt in Jharkhand will work for the benefit of all citizens & usher in an era of peace & prosperity in the state (sic)," Rahul Gandhi tweeted after the event.

I attended the swearing in ceremony of CM Hemant Soren Ji & ministers from the Congress party in Ranchi today. I'm confident that the new Govt in Jharkhand will work for the benefit of all citizens & usher in an era of peace & prosperity in the state. pic.twitter.com/nIg1svJ0uL

— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) December 29, 2019

NCP chief Sharad Pawar, former President Pranab Mukherjee and Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan tweeted congratulatory messages to Mr Soren.

Congratulations & blessings to @HemantSorenJMM on being sworn in as the CM of #Jharkhand.Unable to attend the ceremony due to indifferent health,I extend my good wishes to you for a successful new term. May you uphold the faith shown by the people in you & the alliance you led.

— Pranab Mukherjee (@CitiznMukherjee) December 29, 2019

Ahead of the event, Mr Soren thanked his voters for the huge mandate he received. "I understand your expectations from the new government. I want to invite all of you to the oath ceremony," he said in a video he posted on Twitter.

CM Designate श्री हेमंत सोरेन जी आज दोपहर 2 बजे झारखण्ड के मुख्यमंत्री पद की शपथ लेंगे।

आप सभी से अपील है कि इस ऐतिहासिक पल के साक्षी बनें।

मोरहाबादी मैदान में आयोजित कार्यक्रम में आप सभी सादर आमंत्रित हैं।#HemantTakesOath @HemantSorenJMM pic.twitter.com/bvCL9p1zgN

— Office of Chief Minister, Jharkhand (@JharkhandCMO) December 29, 2019

Earlier this week, the JMM-Congress-Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) alliance won 47 seats in the 81-member assembly, well ahead of the majority mark. The BJP trailed with 25 seats, making Jharkhand the second state to slip out of its grasp since its huge victory in the April-May Lok Sabha elections.

A team of "specialists" from universities like Oxford and Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), a creative social media campaign and a complete change of strategy helped script Hemant Soren's comeback in the state.

Mr Soren, who was Jharkhand's fifth Chief Minister, has succeeded the BJP's Raghubar Das, who created history of sorts by becoming the first Chief Minister of the state to complete a five-year term.

Son of Shibu Soren, one of the key figures in the statehood movement and a three-time Chief Minister, Hemant Soren made an early entry into politics.

From 2009 to 2013, he was the deputy of Chief Minister Arjun Munda, when the party supported the BJP-led government. Central rule was declared in the state after the JMM withdrew support in January 2013. In July, Hemant Soren took over as the Chief Minister, the youngest ever, at the age of 38 years.