Narayanasamy to become new chief minister of Puducherry

Puducherry: Senior Congress leader and former union minister V. Narayanasamy was on Saturday unanimously elected Legislature Party leader and is all is set to become the tenth chief minister of Puducherry.
Party senior leader and former Delhi chief minister Sheila Dixit and AICC General Secretary Mukul Wasnik, who were deputed by the Congress high command to hold consultations in this regard, told reporters at the end of the meeting that Narayanasamy's choice was unanimous.
They said all party elected legislators agreed that Narayanasamy should be made the chief minister and elected him the CLP leader.
Dixit said the Pradesh Congress Committee president A. Namassivayam proposed the name of Narayanasamy and former chief minister V. Vaithilingam seconded it.
The name of Narayanasamy was also approved by All India Congress Committee chief Sonia Gandhi, she said.
"Everything went off nicely", Dixit said, adding, Sonia Gandhi congratulated him over phone.
Narayanasamy had served as the Minister of State in the Prime Minister's Office in the second United Progressive Alliance government, after being MoS, Parliamentary Affairs, in the first UPA government.
He did not contest the May 16 Assembly election from Puducherry and will now have to seek election to the legislature in a bypoll.
There was a close race between him and Namassivayam who won in the assembly polls retaining Villianoor constituency.
Narayanasamy told reporters that he would consult party legislators and the high command regarding the next step to be taken.
He would meet the Lt Governor of Puducherry to stake claim to form the ministry.
In the assembly polls, Congress won 15 seats while its ally DMK bagged 2 in the 30-member-assembly.
Narayanasamy said a decision on the size of the ministry and induction of DMK members in the cabinet would be taken later.