PM Modi Submits Resignation, Third Oath-Taking Ceremony Set for June 8

On Saturday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will take the oath of office for the third time, making history as the first (and so far only) leader of the nation to serve three terms in office since Congressman Jawaharlal Nehru. In order to tender his resignation and the resignation of his government, Mr. Modi met with President Droupadi Murmu at Rashtrapati Bhavan in Delhi. After then, he was asked to stay in his position until the swearing-in.

This time, Mr. Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party got 240 seats, falling 32 seats shy of the 272-majority threshold. The party had claimed 282 seats in the 2014 election and 303 in the 2019 one. To secure a third term, it will now depend on the 53 seats that the party-led National Democratic Alliance secured.

In Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, Mr. Modi kept his Lok Sabha seat after defeating Ajay Rai of the Congress by fewer than 1.5 lakh votes, making him a three-time Member of Parliament from the temple town.

Earlier today, Mr. Modi, who called the election results a “victory of the world’s largest democracy” and said last night that the NDA will seek to form the government for a third time, presided over a meeting of the Union Cabinet for the last time in current administration.

The opposition alliance, the INDIA bloc led by the Congress, held the BJP back from their lofty goal of 370 seats (400+ with NDA allies). After an incredible showing that saw it shatter the BJP’s lead in several states and defy exit pollsters, the opposition now holds 232 seats.

However, the BJP had enough left in its tank to emerge as the only major party once more, courtesy to victories in Madhya Pradesh (29 of 29), Odisha (20 of 21 seats), Andhra Pradesh (21 of 25), and Bihar (30 of 40), which more than made up for their losses in those states..

Notably, the BJP achieved a significant victory in Kerala, securing its inaugural Lok Sabha seat in the southern state. The results in Kerala and Andhra, along with the BJP’s double to eight seat tally in Telangana, indicate a turnaround from the party’s previous struggles in the south. But for the second time in a row, the party did not win any seats in Tamil Nadu. All 39 seats were won by the INDIA bloc allies and ruling DMK.

In the meantime, the Prime Minister said to a cheering audience at the party’s Delhi headquarters late on Tuesday that Indians had “placed their faith” in the NDA for the third time. “I bow to the people for this affection and assure them we will continue the good work done in the last decade to keep fulfilling aspirations..”
Mr. Modi also highlighted two longstanding politicians from the coalition era who are now viewed as kingmakers: Nitish Kumar, the leader of the Janata Dal (United), and Chandrababu Naidu, the leader of the Telugu Desam Party.