Chhattisgarh CM-designate Vishnu Deo Sai meets Governor Biswabhusan Harichandan

Vishnu Deo Sai and his council of ministers will be taking oath on Wednesday (December 13) in Raipur, a state government official said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, BJP Chief JP Nadda and other leaders of the party are expected to be present at the ceremony.

Vishnu Deo Sai, a tribal face and political veteran who served as a Union Minister, emerged as the dark horse of the week-long suspense over the chief ministerial post of Chhattisgarh.

Former Chhattisgarh CM and BJP leader Raman Singh announced the name of Vishnu Deo Sai as the next CM of Chhattisgarh during the BJP legislature meeting in Raipur on Sunday.

Sai's name was announced as the Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh on Sunday afternoon after a key meeting of the BJP's newly-elected 54 MLAs in the state was held in Raipur.

He won the Kunkuri Assembly seat with a total of 87,604 votes.

Sai is a prominent figure in the BJP and has held various positions, including being the former state chief and former union minister.

Sai hails from the influential Sahu (Teli) community, which has a sizable presence in the Durg, Raipur and Bilaspur divisions.

He served as the state president of the party for Chhattisgarh from 2020 until 2022. He was the Union Minister of State for Mines and Steel in the first PM Modi cabinet. He is highly regarded among tribal voters.

The new chief minister started his political career as a village sarpanch. In 1989, he was elected as a 'panch' of Bagia village panchayat and the next year he became the sarpanch unopposed.

From a village sarpanch, Sai rose to the rank of Union Minister of State for Steel in the first cabinet of PM Modi.

In 1998, he was defeated in the assembly polls from the Pathalgaon seat.

Vishnu Deo won four consecutive Lok Sabha elections from the Raigarh constituency from 1999 to 2014. He was not given a ticket in the 2019 Lok Sabha election.

Of the 90 assembly constituencies in Chhattisgarh, the BJP bagged 54 while the Congress won 35. (ANI)