Naveen Patnaik's 24-year rule ends: Who will be next Odisha CM? Check top 7 contenders

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Odisha Elections 2024: Naveen Patnaik resigned as the Odisha Chief Minister on Wednesday. He tendered his resignation to Governor Raghubar Das at Raj Bhavan, Bhubaneswar. The development came a day after the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ended Patnaik's 24-year rule in Odisha by winning 78 of the 147 seats in the assembly on Tuesday.

Patnaik's Biju Janata Dal (BJD) secured 51 seats, way behind the majority mark of 74.Patnaik had, for the first time, taken oath as the chief minister of Odisha on March 5, 2000. ALSO READ: Odisha Assembly Elections: BJP ousts Naveen Patnaik's BJD after 24 years in power. Here's what went wrongAfter the BJD's poll debacle, all eyes are on the next chief minister of Odisha.

Amid speculations, state BJP president Manmohan Samal said on Wednesday the party's parliamentary board will decide on it in a day or two. He also cited Caretaker Prime Minister Narendra Modi's statement during an election rally in Berhampur, where he had said that the new BJP chief minister would take oath on June 10."The selection of the CM will be based on the criteria set by the PM -- an Odia who will uphold the culture and tradition of the state will be the next chief minister of Odisha," Samal was quoted by news agency PTI as saying.Now the question arise – who will be the next Odisha CM?Among the names making rounds for the Odisha CM-post are:1. Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan Pradhan: He won the Sambalpur Lok Sabha seat by a margin of over 1 lakh votes against BJD's Pranab Prakash Das.2. BJP national vice-president Baijayant Panda: He won the Kendrapara Lok Sabha constituency in Odisha.