Neiphiu Rio was sworn in as chief minister of Nagaland for the fifth term on Tuesday in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other top leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party. Governor La Ganesan administered the oath to office to Rio in Kohima. Union Home minister Amit Shah, party national president JP Nadda, and Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma were also present at the swearing-in ceremony held at the Capital Cultural Hall in Kohima.
Taditui Rangkau Zeliang and Yanthungo Patton took oath as the Deputy Chief Ministers of the state.
Rio staked his claim to form the government only on Monday evening, after the NDPP and BJP
Polling in the northeastern state was held on February 27, and the results were declared on March 2.
This is the first time in Nagaland that central ministers were present at the swearing-in ceremony of the state council of ministers.
The Rio-led NDPP-BJP coalition won 37 seats in the 60-member assembly.
The alliance was the only pre-poll tie-up in the state and contested on a 40-20 seat-sharing formula. The regional party increased its tally from 18 in 2018 to 25 this time, while the saffron party retained its tally of 12 seats, giving the alliance the absolute majority to retain power for the second consecutive term.
The NDPP and BJP had announced during their election campaigns that Rio will be the chief ministerial candidate.