Chief Minister-designate V D Satheesan is set to take oath as the Chief Minister of Kerala on Monday at 10 am at the Central Stadium in Thiruvananthapuram, along with the full 20-member Council of Ministers, marking the return of the United Democratic Front (UDF) to power after a decade.
The swearing-in ceremony follows the UDF’s decisive victory in the 2026 Kerala Assembly elections, which ended the Left Democratic Front’s (LDF) 10-year tenure in the state. The UDF secured 102 seats in the 140-member Assembly, with the Congress emerging as the single-largest party by winning 63 seats. The Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) won 22 seats, while the LDF was reduced to 35 seats. The BJP won three constituencies.
The Cabinet to be sworn in alongside Satheesan includes senior Congress leaders Ramesh Chennithala, K Muraleedharan and KPCC chief Sunny Joseph. The IUML will have five ministers in the government, namely PK Kunhalikutty, PK Basheer, N Samsudheen, KM Shaji and VE Abdul Gafoor.
Other ministers in the Cabinet include Mons Joseph, Shibu Baby John, Anoop Jacob, CP John, AP Anil Kumar, T Siddique, PC Vishnunath, Roji M John, Bindu Krishna, M Liju, KA Thulasi and O J Janeesh.
Satheesan also announced that senior Congress leader Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan will serve as Speaker of the Assembly, while Shanimol Usman will take charge as Deputy Speaker. MLA Apu John Joseph has been appointed as Government Chief Whip.
On Sunday, Satheesan formally announced the Cabinet and later met Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar at Lok Bhavan to submit the list of ministers who would take oath with him.
Addressing reporters after meeting the Governor, Satheesan said the entire Cabinet would be sworn in together with the Chief Minister after nearly six decades.
“Along with the Chief Minister, the full Cabinet will take the oath together after nearly six decades. Among the 63 Congress MLAs, there are many deserving leaders. Several deserving leaders have also been left out and remain outside the Cabinet. There is sadness and difficulty in that. Various limitations, criteria and social realities led to such decisions,” Satheesan said.
He said the government formation process was completed in record time after extensive consultations within the Congress and among coalition partners.
“We have discussed with the coalition partners, we have interacted with all Congress leaders within the party, and within 24 hours, we have completed the entire process. This is the fastest in the history of Kerala,” he added.
© facebook.com/VDSatheeshanParavurSatheesan said regional and social balance were key considerations while finalising the Cabinet. Representation for women and Scheduled Castes was also factored into the process.
“We have 63 MLAs, some are more eligible than others, but unfortunately, we have to consider the social and regional balance and the representation of women and Dalit representation. We are not able to include all the eligible persons in the Cabinet. We have included two members from the SC, and women’s representation has been ensured,” he said.
The Chief Minister-designate further said that allocation of portfolios had been almost finalised and only minor corrections remained.
“Usually, the list is submitted to the Governor after the swearing-in ceremony, and that will be done tomorrow. Following that, the government’s Gazette notification will be issued,” he said.
Senior Congress leader Ramesh Chennithala, who is also set to take oath as a minister, said all internal consultations regarding Cabinet formation had been completed.
“The Chief Minister, V D Satheesan, has already submitted the list to the Governor of Kerala. The Congress party has very senior people. We cannot accommodate everybody in the Cabinet. But we try to accommodate most of the people. The spectacular victory which has been given by the people of Kerala should be respected. We will give good governance to the people of Kerala,” Chennithala said.
He also reiterated that the Congress-IUML alliance remained strong and united.
The IUML confirmed that it would have five ministers in the Cabinet. The party also announced that Kuttiadi MLA Parakkal Abdulla would be inducted into the Cabinet after two-and-a-half years as part of an internal arrangement within the party.
Ahead of the swearing-in ceremony, several leaders selected as ministers expressed gratitude to the party leadership and assured that the new government would work to fulfil promises made during the election campaign.
Congress MLA Roji M John said the government would attempt to meet the expectations of voters who delivered a decisive mandate to the alliance.
“People of Kerala have given us a huge mandate, and they have a lot of expectations from this government. We will definitely try our best to fulfil all the promises that we have made,” he said.
Senior Congress leader K Muraleedharan said the new government would begin implementing its electoral promises in phases.
“The new government will take over tomorrow. We will fulfil our promises to the people. Tomorrow will be a new start. We will implement our five guarantees, especially the free journey for ladies. Step by step, we will fulfil our promises,” he said.
IUML leaders PK Basheer, N Samsudheen and VE Abdul Gafoor also expressed happiness over their induction into the Cabinet and said they would work for the people of the state.
The swearing-in ceremony is expected to draw senior political leaders, party workers and supporters from across Kerala as the UDF formally returns to power after ten years in opposition.
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