LUCKNOW: The BJP's Uttar Pradesh legislature party is to formally elect Chief Minister-designate Yogi Adityanath as its leader in its meeting likely to be held on March 24, a day before his swearing-in, a senior party leader said.
The March 25 swearing-in of Adityanath is to be held in Ikana Stadium on Shaheed Path in Lucknow. The grand swearing-in ceremony is expected to be attended by a galaxy of senior BJP leaders, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and BJP national president JP Nadda, besides other central ministers.
"The date of the meeting of the BJP legislature party is yet to be finalised. However, there is a possibility that the meeting will be held on March 24," a senior UP BJP leader told PTI on Sunday. When contacted, another prominent party leader said, "A meeting of the BJP MLAs was to be held on March 21 but it seems to have been postponed to March 24."
After leading the BJP to a thumping victory in the just-concluded elections, Adityanath will lead the country's most populous and politically crucial state for the second time consecutively as its chief minister. Union Home Minister Shah and former Jharkhand chief minister Raghubar Das have been made observer and co-observer respectively for the government formation in Uttar Pradesh.