BJP leader Mohan Charan Majhi became the third tribal chief minister of Odisha after Giridhar Gamang and Hemananda Biswal of the Congress.Biswal, the first tribal to be at the helm of Odisha, was the chief minister twice.
The Congress leader was at the top post first for the period between December 7, 1989, to March 5, 1990. He became the CM again on December 6, 1999, while this stint ended on March 5, 2000.
Biswal was a six-time MLA who also represented Sundergarh Constituency in the Lok Sabha.
In his second stint, Biswal replaced Gamang who was the chief minister from February 17, 1999, to December 6 of the same year.
Gamang was also elected to the Lok Sabha nine times between 1972 and 2004.
Majhi, a tribal BJP leader, was named the chief minister after the party stormed to power defeating the BJD which was ruling the state for 24 years.
(Except for the headline, this story, from a syndicated feed, has not been edited by Odishatv.in staff)