Port-Louis - Mauritius elections are over. The opposition leader Navin Ramgoolam has been elected as the new Prime Minister and he is officially installed as new Premier of Mauritius on Tuesday after holding victory in the weekend legislative polls.

There are 8,17,305 registered voters, of which more than 6,00,000, about 81.5% turned up to cast their votes.

Mr. Berenger, who headed a coalition of the Mauritian Militant Movement (MMM) and the Militant Socialist Movement (MSM), was defeated on Sunday's polls to Ramgoolam's opposition Social Alliance.

Ramgoolam is 58, energetic and national minded personality. He re-captured the premier's seat, which he had lost to Berenger in the 2000 elections.

On declaration of the final results, President Anerood Jugnauth named Dr. Ramghoolam as country's new head of government shortly after receiving the resignation of the outgoing Prime Minister Paul Berenger. Dr. Ramghoolam is the Labour Party Chief.

According to Cape Times, the shift of power in Mauritius has been a continuous musical chair affair between alliances of convenience and close families, on an island where around two-thirds of the population are Hindus and the prime political stakes are between socialists and right-wingers.

According to the national election board (first announcement), the Social Alliance won 38 of the 62 constituencies up for grabs and Ramgoolam was to return to the Prime Ministership, which he had held after winning elections in 1995.

Berenger's coalition, by contrast, won just 22 seats, according to those results.

The electoral board will nominate eight seats in the 70-member national assembly under the so-called "best losers" system, which rewards high placing also-runs with seats in parliament. Pravin Jagnauth is likely to win one such seat.

Mr. Berenger, 60,  however, retained his parliamentary seat and shall represent his Rose Hill constituency in the next Parliament.

Dr. Manmohan Singh, India's Prime Minister sent his congratulations to Dr. Ramgoolam for being installed as Prime Minister of Mauritius.

Dr. Raj Baldev, President of National Integration Assembly (NIA) sent a congratulatory message to Dr. Ramgoolam through the High Commissioner of Mauritius in New Delhi. Others who felicitated Dr. Ramgoolam on behalf of the NIA are Mrs. Tripta Bhatia and Mr. Dev Prakash, both Vice Presidents, Miss Shashi Kala, NIA Secretary among others.

Ramgoolam's father, Seewoosagur Ramgoolam was the isle's first president since independence in 1968. He lost the seat to Sir Aneerod Jagnauth, the present president, in the country's elections held in 1982.

In 1995 elections, the Junior Ramgoolam beat Jagnauth, the then Prime Minister, who had been in power since 1982. Jagnauth was elected president in 2003 to replace Karl Offman.

Aneerod Jagnauth's son, Pravin Jagnauth, was tipped to be the country's next Prime minister after an agreement with Berenger.