Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren on Tuesday expanded his one-month-old ministry and inducted seven ministers into his Council of Ministers.
Governor Droupadi Murmu administered the oath of office and secrecy to the newly inducted ministers in a simple ceremony at Raj Bhavan in Ranchi.
Five of the new ministers are from the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) and two belong to the Congress. The JMM-Congress-RJD coalition government assumed power in the state on December 29 last year, ousting the BJP-led regime.
Mr Soren inducted Champai Soren, Haji Hussain Ansari, Jagarnath Mahato, Joba Manjhi, Mithilesh Kumar Thakur (from JMM), Banna Gupta and Badal Patralekh (from Congress).
Mr Mahato and Mr Thakur are first-time ministers and Ms Manjhi had been a minister in the previous NDA governments before she joined the JMM. The other four were ministers in the previous UPA governments.
With five newly inducted ministers belonging to the JMM, the senior ruling party has six members in the council of ministers, including the chief minister, while the Congress has four and the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) one.
Now the council of ministers has 11 members, leaving the scope to induct one more minister.
As per the constitutional provisions, Jharkhand can have a maximum of 12 ministers including the chief minister.
The previous Raghubar Das government had run the dispensation with only 11 ministers all through its five-year term.
It was the first expansion after Mr Soren took oath as the 11th chief minister of Jharkhand on December 29, 2019 along with Congress leaders Alamgir Alam and Rameshwar Oraon and Satyanand Bhokta of the RJD.
The expansion of ministry was earlier scheduled to be held on January 24. It was postponed at the request of the chief minister in the wake of the killings of seven villagers in West Singhbhum district.
Opinion: Opinion | Dilli To Dili: India's 'Acting East' In East Timor In Birthday Wish To Hemant Soren, Rahul Gandhi's "INDIA Will Fight'' Message Hemant Soren Flaunts His Prisoners' Stamp, Vows To Fight Injustice How Extreme Weather Is Leading To Rise In Child Marriages In Pakistan "Probably First Time Since '87/88...": Omar Abdullah On J&K Poll Dates Muhammad Yunus Dials PM Modi, Assures Protection Of Hindus In Bangladesh Man Bites Off Part Of Father's Thumb During Argument Over Property: Cops Sikh Woman, Minor Son Kidnapped By 2 In Pakistan Rescued: Cops Chhattisgarh NEET UG 2024 Counselling Schedule Released, Check Details Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world.