Indian President Ram Nath Kovind on Saturday appointed Narendra Modi to the office of the prime minister of India, hours after he was elected the leader of the Bharatiya Janata Party's parliamentary party as well as the National Democratic Alliance.
Recording a massive victory, the Bharatiya Janata Party alone won 303 seats out of the 542 seats in the 2019 General Elections. The Congress secured only 52 seats, which is not enough for it to claim the post of the Leader of Opposition in the new House, report agencies.
Earlier on Saturday, an NDA delegation led by BJP President Amit Shah called on President Ram Nath Kovind and handed over a letter stating that Modi had been elected leader of the BJP Parliamentary Party.
Letters of support from NDA constituent parties were also handed over to the president. Modi then went to meet the president around 9 pm and staked his claim to form the government.
Kovind invited him to form the government, and asked Modi to “advise him about the names of others to be appointed members of the Union Council of Ministers” and “indicate the date and time of the swearing-in-ceremony to be held at Rashtrapati Bhavan”.
Modi’s swearing-in ceremony as prime minister is likely to take place on May 30, according to ANI, but there is no official confirmation yet.
“President today gave me a letter designating me as the Prime Minister,” Modi said after meeting with Kovind. It was his first speech in the second term as the prime minister. “The country has given me a huge mandate and the mandate comes with the expectations of the people.”
“‘Sabka saath, sabka vikas, sabka vishwas’ is a mantra that shows the path to development for every region of India,” Modi added. “I once again thank the people of the nation and assure them that the new govt will leave no stones unturned to fulfill your dreams & expectations.”
Earlier on Saturday, Kovind dissolved the 16th Lok Sabha after Modi and his government submitted their resignations to pave way to form a new government at the Centre. Unidentified officials told PTI that there is no decision taken on whether foreign dignitaries would be invited to the swearing-in ceremony.
In 2014, Modi had invited the heads of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation nations to his oath-taking ceremony as prime minister.