The National Democratic Alliance, led by the Bharatiya Janata Party, will nominate the leader of its new members on Friday, setting the stage for Modi to become prime minister for an unprecedented third term.
According to reliable sources, the inauguration will probably take place on Sunday. Senior alliance members like TDP’s N Chandrababu Naidu, JD(U)’s Nitish Kumar and Shiv Sena’s Eknath Shinde will meet President Droupadi Murmu after Modi is elected leader of NDA MPs. The objective of this meeting is to present to the president the list of MPs who support Modi.
He may be sworn in over the weekend, probably on Sunday, they added. With 293 MPs, the NDA easily surpasses the majority of 272 needed to form the 543-member Lok Sabha. Senior BJP figures such as JP Nadda, Amit Shah and Rajnath Singh have also been negotiating with allies to find a cooperative way to get their fair share of representation in the government, which will vitally depend on them for survival.
Since the June 4 results for government formation, the BJP leadership has acted quickly to allay any anxieties following the verdict. The ruling party suffered a major blow when it lost its majority for the first time since 2014 and now needs the cooperation of its allies to remain in office.
(With input from PTI)