This Article is From May 19, 2009

B C Khanduri to resign as Uttarkhand CM

New Delhi: Owning responsibility for BJP's rout in Uttarakhand in the Lok Sabha polls, Chief Minister B C Khanduri has decided to resign, setting in motion the hunt for his successor in the party.

Seventy five-year-old Khanduri, who has been the Chief Minister since March 2007, will be submitting his resignation to party chief Rajnath Singh, sources said.

Khanduri took the decision after meeting senior BJP leader L K Advani and Rajnath Singh in New Delhi on Monday as the party has not won even one of the five seats in the state.

In the dissolved Lok Sabha, the party had two members from the state.

BJP's Legislative Party will meet in Dehradun to choose Khanduri's successor, the sources said. An observer is likely to be sent by the central leadership to the state to oversee the election.

Former Chief Minister B S Koshiyari, who is a Rajya Sabha member, is considered to be the front-runner for the post.
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