By IANS,
New Delhi : Ramesh Pokhriyal will be the new chief minister of Uttarakhand replacing B.C. Khanduri, the Bharatiya Janata Party announced here Wednesday.
“I thank party members and Khanduriji. As chief minister, my efforts will be to work to fulfil Khandurji’s dream to make our state heaven on earth,” Pokhriyal told reporters.
Sitting next to senior BJP leader M. Venkaiah Nadu, he said: “I hope to live up to all expectations from me. Khanduriji has been my guiding force since I entered politics in 1991 and I will work on his mission to make Uttarakhand a modern state.”
Pokhriyal was earlier holding the health ministry portfolio.
Khanduri had offered to step down following the party’s poor performance in the state in the Lok Sabha elections and the party had Tuesday accepted his resignation.
In the April-May elections, the state’s ruling party lost on all five Lok Sabha seats from the state. In 2004, the party had won three Lok Sabha seats.