With Pushkar Singh Dhami to be the Uttarakhand's chief minister again despite losing his own seat, the current central leadership of the Bharatiya Janta Party has opted for stability by continuing with its handpicked leader in the state that has seen frequent change at the helm.
It is also a break from the past as on similar occasions the BJP had earlier preferred to elect a sitting MLA as its chief minister. This is the first time the BJP has gone ahead with someone to lead the government in the state even after the leader lost his own assembly seat.
On the other hand, Pramod Sawant was unanimously elected the leader of the BJP legislature party in Goa, paving the way for him to take over as the chief minister for a second term, and soon after the ruling party staked a claim to form the new government with support from two Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party MLAs and three Independent legislators.
The BJP, which won 20 seats in the 40-member Assembly, submitted letters of support from the MGP, Goa's oldest regional party, and three Independent MLAs to Governor PS Sreedharan Pillai, who invited Sawant to form the next government.
Pushkar Singh Dhami, who was appointed as chief minister in July last year and was the third chief minister of Uttarakhand in four months, led the party to a record second straight term in the hill state, with the BJP winning 47 seats out of 70.
Though 46-year-old Dhami lost his own seat of Khatima, many MLAs, including independents, have offered to vacate their seats for him.
According to constitutional norms, Dhami will have to get elected to the state assembly within six months of assuming office.
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