Who is Mohan Charan Majhi, BJP’s first Chief Minister in Odisha?

BJP's tribal leader and four-time MLA Mohan Charan Majhi will be sworn in on Wednesday (June 12) as the new chief minister of Odisha.

The saffron party came to power for the first time with a clear mandate in the Odisha assembly elections, ending the 24-year stint of BJD and the party chief Naveen Patnaik.

The BJP won 78 seats in the 147-member Odisha Assembly, while the BJD bagged 51.

Odisha's third tribal CM

Mohan Charan Majhi will be Odisha’s first BJP Chief Minister and the state's third tribal chief minister of Odisha after Congress's Hemananda Biswal and Giridhar Gamang.

The decision was taken at the BJP legislature party meeting held on June 11 in Bhubaneshwar. Party members unanimously chose 52-year-old Majhi as its leader.

Union ministers Rajnath Singh and Bhupender Yadav attended the meeting as central observers.

Surprise pick

Announcing the name of Majhi, who is a surprise pick, Rajnath wrote on X, “Delighted to announce that Shri Mohan Charan Majhi has been elected unanimously as the leader of Odisha BJP Legislature Party. He is a young and dynamic party karyakarta who will take the state forward on the road to progress and prosperity as the new Chief Minister of Odisha. Many congratulations to him.”

After his name was announced as the new chief minister, Majhi said, “I thank Lord Jagannath, the reigning deity of Odisha. It is due to the blessings of Lord Jagannath, that the BJP has achieved a majority in Odisha and is going to form the government in the State. I would like to thank the 4.5 crore Odias who decided to vote for a change and bring the BJP to power in Odisha. The BJP will definitely honour the trust that the people of Odisha have shown.”

Popular tribal leader

Majhi is a member of the Santali tribe from Raikala village in the mineral-rich Keonjhar district. The son of a watchman, he started his career as a teacher at the Saraswati Shishu Vidya Mandir, a school run by the RSS. His political career began when he became the sarpanch of the Raikala panchayat.

Majhi is a popular politician, especially in the tribal areas. He always espoused the cause of the tribals, and was the national secretary of the BJP ST Morcha.

He first became an MLA in 2000 and was re-elected in 2004. However, he lost the elections in 2009 and 2014 after the BJP-BJD alliance in Odisha broke down. He returned to the Assembly in 2019, and now, got re-elected for the fourth time in 2024.

Majhi made a mark especially during his previous term as MLA and the Chief Whip of the BJP in the 16th Odisha Legislative Assembly. He was instrumental in introducing seven private member’s bills, one of them being the Odisha Whistle Blowers’ Protection Bill, 2020.

Extremely active in the Assembly, Majhi has taken part in several discussions. He was also the Chairman of the Public Accounts Committee from 2022.

Notably, he was also involved in charting the party’s strategy for the just-concluded elections.

Vocal against corruption and nepotism

In 2023, Majhi was suspended from the Assembly for throwing dal at the Speaker’s podium. He did this along with his MLA colleague Mukesh Mahaling to bring to everyone’s attention the alleged ₹700-crore scam in the purchase of pulses for the mid-day meal project in the state.

He has been vocal against corruption and nepotism. Hailing from Keonjhar district which has the distinction of having India’s largest iron ore deposits in a single district, he has vehemently raised the issue of mining scams in the Assembly. He also spoke out against the utilisation of huge sums of money under the District Mineral Foundation.

A law graduate with an MA, he is known for doing extensive research to collect data on relevant subjects to raise issues concerning people’s welfare in the Assembly. He is known for his interventions in the Odisha Assembly.

Known to be a non-controversial person, Majhi is a strong organisational leader. He has strong RSS links, and has done a lot of work in BJP’s Odisha state unit.

People's leader

Majhi is a people's leader as he makes it a point to attend social functions in all the villages that fall under his constituency.

He is known for extending a helping hand to those in need, and goes out of his way to ensure that patients get better treatment in larger hospitals. When his personal assistant died in an accident, he left a party MLAs’ meeting to console the family members. It is this personal touch and empathy for the common person that have helped him gain people’s trust and made him a four-time MLA, and now a chief minister.

According to sources, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and senior BJP leaders are expected to attend the swearing-in ceremony of the Majhi government on Wednesday (June 12) at the Janata Maidan in Bhubaneswar.