TDP chief N Chandrababu Naidu on Wednesday took oath as the chief minister of Andhra Pradesh for the fourth time in a star-studded programme attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other key BJP leaders and celebrity film stars.

On the occasion, a new cabinet comprising 24 ministers, including JSP leader Pawan Kalyan who is set to be the deputy chief minister, was also sworn in later by Governor S Abdul Nazeer.

Advertisement

The swearing-taking ceremony was held at 11:27 am at the Kesarapalli IT Park near Gannavaram.

Three of the ministers sworn in today are from the JSP and one from the BJP. However, the Cabinet can accommodate another berth which has been left vacant for the time being.

After taking the oath of office, a visibly emotional Naidu was congratulated by the prime minister with a warm hug. After Naidu, it was Pawan Kalyan’s turn followed by Nara Lokesh and K Atchen Naidu. P Narayana, who had been instrumental in taking up the Amaravati capital city project during Naidu’s earlier tenure, was also included in the Cabinet.

There are three women ministers in the AP Cabinet this time. Among the 24 ministers, 17 are newcomers, including those from the JSP and BJP. Apart from Pawan Kalyan, Nadendla Manohar and Kandula Durgesh were sworn in from the JSP while Satya Kumar Yadav is the lone representative of the BJP.

There are eight ministers from backward classes, three from the Scheduled Castes, and one each from a Scheduled Tribe and a minority community.

Although Chandrababu Naidu was part of the NDA in 2014 and his swearing-in ceremony had seen the presence of BJP’s old guards like LK Advani and MM Joshi and several Union ministers like Rajnath Singh and Nirmala Seetharaman, today’s event was far more star-studded, considering that TDP’s support was crucial for the NDA government at the Centre.

Apart from Prime Minister Narendra Modi, BJP’s top leadership, including Union Home Minister Amit Shah and national president and Union Minister JP Nadda, Union Surface Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari, and party’s national general secretary BL Santosh were present at the swearing-in ceremony.

Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, NCP leader Praful Patel and LJP leader Chirag Paswan were also present along with BJP leader Bandi Sanjay Kumar from neighbouring Telangana. Superstar Rajnikanth and Chiranjeevi added to the star quotient.

At the end of the ceremony, the prime minister met megastar Chiranjeevi at the request of his brother Pawan Kalyan and held their hands aloft as the crowd cheered loudly. However, YSRCP leader and outgoing chief minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy stayed away from the event.

Right from early in the morning, every road led to Kesarapalli IT Hub. There was a huge traffic jam at the Kaja toll plaza in Guntur with a large number of vehicles coming from Rayalaseema and Nellore. The atmosphere was electrifying. A huge boat rally was organised on River Krishna by the Amaravati Sand Boat Owners’ Association to demonstrate their support for the new government. The boats were all adorned with flags of the TDP, JSP, and BJP.

Naidu will take charge tomorrow evening after a family trip to Tirumala. He will reach the Secretariat at the auspicious moment of 4:41 pm and sign several key files pertaining to the large-scale recruitment of teachers, the increase in the amount of pension to Rs4000, and the repeal of the land titling act.

He will also sign files to revive Anna canteens that provided meals at a nominal cost. These were part of the promises made during the poll campaign by TDP.