Sukhbir Singh Badal was today sworn in as Deputy Chief Minister of Punjab, the first case of a father and son sharing the top two posts in a government, within a year of taking over the reins of the Shiromai Akali Dal.
Governor Gen. (retd) S.F. Rodrigues administered the oath of office and secrecy to Mr Sukhbir Badal, 47, at a feisty ceremony attended by top leaders of ally BJP including its president Rajnath Singh and Vasundra Raje Scindia.
Though the BJP's state unit has been sulking over the move, its chief Rajinder Bhandari and Minister Manoranjan Kalia were present. Mr Sukhbir Badal, dressed in white kurta-pyjama, black jacket and blue turban, read out the oath in Punjabi.
The large audience broke into loud cheers and sound of drum beats rent the air as the US-educated son of Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal bent down to touch his father's feet while his mother, Mrs Surinder Kaur, wife Ms Harsimrat Kaur, and other members of the Badal clan, who were present in strength, looked on.
Mr Sukhbir Badal, who had taken over as SAD president on Jan 31 last year marking a generational shift in one of the oldest regional parties in the country, earlier paid obeisance at the Golden Temple here.
Breaking from tradition of holding swearing-in ceremonies in Chandigarh, Amritsar was chosen as the venue because of its religious and historical importance.
