"Thank people of Sikkim for giving us thumping majority": CM Prem Singh Tamang after taking oath
Jun 10, 2024
Gangtok (Sikkim) [India], June 10 : After taking oath as Sikkim Chief Minister for the second consecutive term on Monday, Prem Singh Tamang thanked the people of the state for giving them a thumping majority.
When asked about the reason behind the victory, Tamang said that they had fulfilled the promises made in 2019 and did development work in the state that's the reason people have chosen them.
"I thank the people of Sikkim for giving us a thumping majority. The reason behind our victory is that we fulfilled the promises made in 2019 and did development work in the state. National security is our top priority. We are completing 50 years of statehood in 2025, I will speak to the PM on this," the Chief Minister told ANI.
Governor Lakshman Prasad Acharya administered the oath of office and secrecy to Tamang and his Council of Ministers during the swearing-in ceremony at Paljor Stadium.
Sikkim Krantikari Morcha (SKM) won 31 out of the 32 seats, thus sweeping the assembly polls in the Himalayan state while the opposition Sikkim Democratic Front (SDF) was confined to a lone seat.
Tamang earlier described the party's victory as a 'record' as the state reportedly witnessed the most peaceful election of Sikkim and thanked all who favoured the party's return to power.
"In 5 years, we will fulfil all the announcements that we made at the time of the elections. I would like to thank all my workers, they worked hard. I would also like to thank the public. This is the most peaceful election of Sikkim, this is a record," he said.
Tamang won the elections from the Rhenock Assembly seat defeating SDF's Som Nath Poudyal by over 7,396 votes.
The polling for 32 assembly seats in Sikkim was held on April 19 in the first phase simultaneously with the Lok Sabha elections.
This is the third time, Sikkim has witnessed a landslide victory of a political party as similar results were drawn by Sikkim Sangram Parishad and SDF in 1989 and 2009 respectively.
In the 2019 assembly elections, the SKM won 17 seats, while the SDF secured 15 seats out of the 32 seats. SKM won 10 seats in 2014 as it faced its first assembly elections.
Interestingly, SKM had in 2019 joined hands with the BJP-led NDA ahead of the assembly elections but ultimately severed ties and fought the 2019 assembly polls alone.
