By IANS,
Raipur : Dharamlal Kaushik, an influential OBC (other backward classes) leader, will be the new Chhattisgarh assembly speaker, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government announced Monday.
“The BJP’s newly elected legislators and party leaders unanimously decided to nominate Kaushik as the state’s assembly speaker,” Chief Minister Raman Singh told reporters soon after the swearing-in ceremony of the council of ministers ended at the Police Parade Ground here.
Kaushik won the Bilha assembly seat in Bilaspur district in the November assembly polls.
The BJP, which got 50 seats in the 90-member state assembly, was finding it tough to persuade a senior party legislator to be speaker as everyone wanted to be minister.
Governor E.S.L. Narasimhan administered oath of office to 11 BJP legislators. Raman Singh himself was sworn in Dec 12.
The maiden sitting of the state assembly is likely early next month where on the agenda, among others, shall be administering oath to newly elected legislators.