Prime Minister Narendra Modi was on Saturday unanimously elected the leader of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) after Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) chief Prakash Singh Badal proposed his name.
Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar, Lok Jan Shakti Party chief Ram Vilas Paswan and Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray endorsed PM Modi's name and extended the support of their political outfits.
BJP President Amit Shah welcomed all the elected members to the NDA meeting and thanked them for unanimously choosing Narendra Modi as the new Prime Minister of the country.
Home minister Rajnath Singh, transport minister Nitin Gadkari and foreign affairs minister Sushma Swaraj also welcomed Modi's name as the leader of the winning coalition and congratulated him.
Advertisement
Veterans Lal Krishna Advani and Murali Manohar Joshi blessed Modi as the attendees cheered for the prime minister.
The prime minister is expected to meet President Ram Nath Kovind at 8 pm to stake claim to the government.
"Modi is elected the leader of the parliamentary party of 353 MPs unanimously," BJP president Amit Shah announced after the election as Modi acknowledged the support and cheers from MPs.
Shah proposed Modi's name and former party presidents Rajnath Singh and Nitin Gadkari seconded the proposal.
Modi's election was a mere formality as the NDA had already declared him the alliance's prime ministerial candidate.
Advertisement
Addressing newly elected parliamentarians, Modi said there was a pro-incumbency wave in the country, adding that the trust was not just between the people and government, but also among the public at large.
"This is also the first time in independent India that such a large number of women MPs have been elected to the parliament," he said, adding that it could happen only due to their own power.
He asked MPs to shun VIP culture and said they should stand in queues wherever required, like other citizens.
PM Modi also urged newly elected MPs, who are still not completely familiar with media activities in the national capital, to exercise restraint while speaking to journalists. "Unwanted statements, made for publicity, often trouble us," he said.
PM Modi has led the NDA to a landslide win in the general election, with the BJP winning 303 seats, its highest ever, and its allies 50.
(With PTI inputs)
