Sawant took an oath of secrecy as the 11th Chief Minister of Goa last night at 2 am the day after Mr Manohar Parrikar was cremated with state honours. Pramod Sawant represents the Sanquelim constituency in the Goa Legislative Assembly. He is an Ayurveda practitioner by profession. He was serving as the speaker of the Goa assembly before being sworn in as Chief Minister, after the death of the sitting chief minister Manohar Parrikar.
The new CM said the party had given him a huge responsibility. He even told“Whatever I am today is all due to Manohar Parrikar. It was he who brought me to politics. I became the Speaker and the CM today, due to him,” he said after meeting the Governor.
The BJP-led alliance has a strength of 21, which includes 12 of the BJP, three each of the MGP and the Goa Forward Party and three Independents in the truncated House of 36 (40). Congress has 14 MLAs, while Nationalist Congress has one.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted, congratulating Mr Sawant."Best wishes to Dr Pramod Sawant and his team as they begin their journey towards fulfilling the dreams of the people of Goa. I am sure they will build on the work done in the last few years and boost Goa's growth trajectory," he posted.