Mamata sworn in as West Bengal CM

KOLKATA, May 20 (Agencies): Mamata Banerjee has been sworn in as the chief minister(CM) of the West Bengal, the first woman to hold the post. The swearing-in ceremony was held at the governor's house in Calcutta and attended by several leaders of the outgoing communist government. Ms Banerjee's Trinamool Congress (TMC) routed the communists, who had been in power since 1977. Thousands of people lined the streets shouting, "We are with you didi (sister)" as Banerjee, who heads the regional Trinamool Congress, arrived at the sprawling governor's residence in state capital Kolkata to be sworn in. Outgoing communist chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee was present at the ceremony. Banerjee, a populist who casts herself as a champion of the poor, rode a wave of popular discontent to defeat the communists over their handling of the economy, which left industry in decline and the state neck-deep in debt. She took the oath in Bengali, the language of West Bengal, a state of 90 million people. Thirty-six ministers were also sworn in. Banerjee, known for her plain lifestyle and mercurial nature, resigned from her job as national railways minister late on Thursday to take up her new responsibilities. Meanwhile, another report adds, Indian MP Kanimozhi has been arrested in connection with the country's biggest corruption scandal. She denies conspiracy and accepting bribes in the alleged mis-selling of telecoms licences, which auditors say cost the country about $40bn (£24.5bn). A judge in the capital, Delhi, rejected her application for bail and she is due to be produced in court on Saturday. Ms Kanimozhi (43) is the daughter of M Karunanidhi, an important ally of the Congress-led federal government. Her party colleague, former telecoms minister Andimuthu Raja, is already in jail in connection with the scandal. He is accused of selling mobile telephony spectrum to firms at a fraction of their real value in exchange for bribes in 2008. He too denies all wrongdoing. Along with Ms Kanimozhi, the court also rejected the bail application of a senior television executive.