Mamata Banerjee to take oath as WB CM at 10:45 am on Wednesday

Kolkata: Mamata Banerjee, who led her Trinamool Congress to a third consecutive victory in West Bengal, winning 213 out of 292 seats in the assembly elections, will take the oath as the chief minister at 10.45 am at Raj Bhawan on Wednesday.

“In view of the current Covid situation, the function (oath taking ceremony) will be with a limited audience,” a Raj Bhawan communique said.

Though the 66-year-old firebrand TMC leader steered her party to a massive victory with a wounded leg, she lost her newly chosen assembly constituency Nandigram in the East Medinipur district, to her former cabinet colleague --turned-BJP candidate Suvendu Adhikari by less than 2000 votes.

Despite losing the constituency, the Indian Constitution, however, allows Ms Banerjee to take up office as the chief minister for another term provided she gets elected from an assembly seat within six months.

Article 164(4) of the Constitution allows a non-legislator to occupy a post in the council of ministers, including the office of the chief minister but only for six months

Within these six months, the individual will have to get elected to the assembly or the Legislative Council otherwise he or she will cease to be a minister. The council seats are filled through indirect polling by Legislative Assembly members.

This will not be the first time Ms Banerjee will be assuming chief ministerial office without being the member of assembly.

In 2011 when TMC ousted the then Left Front government, she took oath as West Bengal’s CM for the first time without contesting the assembly elections. She was elected from Bhowanipore a few months later. (UNI)