Mamata Banerjee Swears In As West Bengal Chief Minister For Her Third Term

Mamata Banerjee takes oath as West Bengal CM for the third time: Mamata Banerjee was sworn in at Raj Bhavan on Wednesday (May 5) morning as the chief minister of West Bengal. The Trinamool Congress chief was recently elected for a third consecutive term in the state.

Banerjee arrived at the Raj Bhavan in Kolkata at around 10.45 am. The event was administered by WB Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar, ANI reported.

Mamata Banerjee takes oath as the Chief Minister of #WestBengal for a third consecutive term. She was administered the oath by Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar. pic.twitter.com/IXy05xNZPZ

— ANI (@ANI) May 5, 2021

After being sworn in, Banerjee addressed the reports of political violence in the state which followed the declaration of assembly election results. "For the last three months, the state was under the Election Commission and I did not have much say. There was a lot of inefficiency in the state system during this time. I will set up a new police system today itself and tackle the violence with utmost firmness." She added that tackling the "law and order" in the state was a priority for her. "I appeal to all political parties to refrain from any sort of violence. I will be posting special officers to handle the situation and will handle the situation sternly," Banerjee further said.

The swearing-in ceremony of Trinamool Congress Party leader was kept low-key due to the COVID-19 pandemic. "In view of current Covid situation function will be with limited audience," Dhankhar had earlier revealed on Twitter. He had also mentioned that the ceremony will only have a few invitees. Read all you need to know about Mamata Banerjee’s swearing-in ceremony here.

West Bengal: TMC chief Mamata Banerjee arrives at the Raj Bhavan in Kolkata. She will take oath as the Chief Minister of the state for her third consecutive term, shortly. pic.twitter.com/7RALTUWUN4

— ANI (@ANI) May 5, 2021

"We want Biman Banerjee to become the speaker of the Assembly. Meanwhile, Subrata Mukherjee has been made the protem speaker," TMC leader Partha Chatterjee had said while briefing the media.

When asked how Banerjee will be sworn in as the chief minister despite losing the Nandigram seat, Chatterjee said, "Matter still pending with Election Commission. The constitution provision is also there. There will be no hindrance ...no one can stop Mamata Banerjee to become the Chief Minister."

Banerjee had tendered her resignation from the post of chief minister to Dhankhar on Monday. Earlier in the day, she met the newly elected members at Trinamool Bhavan where she was elected the leader of the legislative party.

Fresh from the state assembly win, Banerjee is already eyeing Lok Sabha elections in 2024. “I am a street fighter. All I can do is give a boost to the people to fight together in 2024. I think, all together, we can fight the battle for 2024. But right now we have to fight COVID-19. We have to defeat it first. Then we can discuss all this. We can hold a Brigade rally where leaders from other states will be called,” she said recently.

As per reports, after the swearing-in ceremony, Banerjee will be given a guard of honour by Kolkata Police at Nabanna - the state secretariat. Thereafter, she will hold an emergency meeting - first one in her t- at the office and it will be on the rising COVID-19 crisis in the state, TOI reported. The sources added that the other cabinet members will be sworn in on May 6 and 7 maintaining all COVID-19 protocols.

After eight rounds of polling in the state, Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress won 213 seats (of the total 292) in West Bengal, while the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) only managed to bag 77 seats.

Image Credit: The Hans India