The Hindu Business Line : Kerala: Chandy, 4 Ministers sworn in

THE senior Congress leader, Mr Oommen Chandy, was sworn in as the 19th Chief Minister of the State at a simple ceremony at the Raj Bhavan here on Tuesday.

The Governor, Mr R. L. Bhatia, administered the oath of office and secrecy to Mr Chandy and four others representing the constituent members of the ruling Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) coalition.

Those sworn in as members of the new Cabinet were Mr P.K. Kunhalikkutty of the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML), Mr K. M. Mani of the Kerala Congress (M), Ms K.R. Gowri Amma of the Janadhipathya Samrakshana Samithi (JSS), and Mr M.V. Raghavan of the Communist Marxist Party (CMP). All were members of the A. K. Antony-led Council of Ministers that demitted office on Sunday.

Two members of the coalition and former ministers, Mr T.M. Jacob of the Kerala Congress (Jacob) and Mr R. Balakrishna Pillai of the Kerala Congress (Pillai) were left out of the new Cabinet.

The Revolutionary Socialist Party (B), another member of the coalition, suffered a split on Tuesday in a development that is being attributed to intra-party rivalry.

Talking to newspersons after the first meeting of the newly installed Cabinet, Mr Chandy said he proposed to hold discussions with Congress MLAs and other party leaders and ascertain their views on expansion of the Cabinet.

He would then travel to New Delhi to apprise the Congress High Command of the outcome of his discussions. In any case, the expansion will take place within a week. Portfolio allocations will be decided only after this, the Chief Minister said.