Pushkar Singh Dhami sworn-in as Uttarakhand CM; journey from RSS worker to state's top post
Dhami is relatively a political novice as compared to his predecessors with just a two-term score in the state Assembly, but he has been associated with the RSS for more than three decades
Pushkar Singh Dhami is set to become the eleventh Chief Minister of Uttarakhand. Image credits: @PIBDehradun
BJP MLA Pushkar Singh Dhami, long associated with the BJP and the RSS, was sworn in as Uttarakhand chief minister on Sunday.
The legislator representing the Khatima Assembly seat was elected as the leader of the BJP legislature party on Saturday.
The oath-taking ceremony was held at the Raj Bhavan at 5 pm.
Dhami replaces Tirath Singh Rawat
The name of Dhami, a two-time MLA from Khatima in Udham Singh Nagar district, was announced by Tomar, the party's central observer.
Dhami replaced Tirath Singh Rawat who resigned late on Friday night.
Who is Pushkar Singh Dhami?
Dhami is considered to be close to Maharashtragovernor and former Uttarakhand chief minister Bhagat Singh Koshyari. According to NDTV, he served as an Officer on Special Duty to Koshyari. Dhami is also considered close to Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, the report said.
Born on 16 September, 1975, in Kanalichinna of Pithoragarh district, Dhami’s early education took place in the village. Dhami pursued his higher education from Lucknow University and is a Post Graduate in Management. He completed his LLB from Lucknow University in 2002.
Dhami has held various posts, from the district to the national level, in the Akhil Bhartiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) from 1990 to 1999. He has served as the state chief of the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha from 2002 to 2008 and has also been the BJP's state unit vice-president.
Dhami has also been associated with the RSS for over three decades, "a factor that would have tilted the scales in his favour as the BJP sifted through claimants to replace Tirath Singh Rawat," The Indian Express reported.
According to the Times of India, the 45-year-old BJP legislator will be the youngest MLA to hold the Uttarakhand chief minister's post.
Bharatiya Janta Party names Pushkar Singh Dhami as the next Uttarakhand Chief Minister pic.twitter.com/aqAHUNQB5u
— ANI (@ANI) July 3, 2021
Dhami's tenure as an MLA began in 2012, when he fought the Khatima Assembly seat and won on a BJP ticket. In 2016, he was appointed as the BJ Uttarakhand vice president. Dhami retained his seat in 2017, however closely lost out on the chance to occupy the chief minister's office, the report said.
Soon after being elected as the leader of the legislature party, Dhami thanked the party leadership for reposing faith in him and said that he will deal with the challenges lying ahead with everyone's cooperation.
"My party has appointed a common worker, son of an ex-serviceman, who was born in Pithoragarh, to serve the state. We'll work together for people's welfare. We accept the challenge of serving people with the help of others, in a short time span," news agency ANI quoted him as saying.
Why Tirath Singh Rawat Resigned?
Tirath Singh Rawat assumed office on 10 March and had until September, as per Constitutional guidelines, to get elected to the state Assembly. However, he resigned much before as there were doubts as to whether bypolls to two seats would be held. The term of the current Assembly is slated to end in March, less than a year from now.
It was also reported that scathing criticism by the courts of the string of elections held during the coronavirus
pandemic could also contribute to the EC decision on conducting Uttarakhand bypolls.
With inputs from agencies