Ranchi: Raghuvar Das, national vice-president of BJP will be the first non-tribal Chief Minister of Jharkhand after he was elected the leader of BJPLP today.
BJP observer J P Nadda said after the legislature party meeting that Das’ name was proposed by Sarayu Roy, another front-runner for the post and C P Singh and supported by all the party MLAs.
Das is also a former deputy chief minister of the state.
Former chief minister Arjun Munda said Das will stake claim to form the BJP-Ajsu party government.
BJP-Ajsu alliance had won absolute majority in the recent assembly polls bagging 42 out of the total 81 seats.
A Raj Bhawan communique said a delegation led by Das will meet Governor Syed Ahmed at 4 PM.
Das will be the third chief minister of BJP in Jharkhand after Babulal Marandi and Arjun Munda.
Marandi has since quit BJP and floated Jharkhand Vikas Morcha (Prajatantrik). While he suffered defeats from Dhanwar and Giridih this time, his party won eight seats.
Munda faced a shock defeat in the polls.
“We will give good and corruption-free governance,” Das, a follower of Jai Prakash Narayan, Atal Bihari Vajpayee and literateur Ramdhari Singh popularly known as Dinker, told mediapersons after being elected the BJPLP leader.
“We will also work for the 93 per cent people in the unorganized sector, ST/SC and the poor,” he added.
Born on December 18, 1954 and a science and law graduate, Das has been representing Jamshedpur(East) constituency from 1995 and had taken part in students movement in 1974 and later participated in workers agitations at TELCO.
PTI
