Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party has formed a coalition government with several partners after losing its absolute majority in the election.
Narendra Modi was sworn in as India's prime minister for a third term, after a stunning electoral setback that will test his ability to ensure political certainty in a coalition government in the world's most populous nation.
Indian President Droupadi Murmu administered the oath of office to Modi at a ceremony on Sunday at Rashtrapati Bhavan, the presidential palace in New Delhi, attended by thousands of dignitaries, including the leaders of seven neighboring countries, Bollywood stars and industrial.
“It is an honor to serve Bharat,” Modi posted on X, minutes before taking the oath, referring to the name of India in Indian languages.
Supporters cheered, clapped and chanted “Modi, Modi” as the 73-year-old leader, dressed in a white kurta tunic and blue half jacket, was called to take the oath.
After taking the oath of office, Modi, flanked by officials from his Hindu nationalist party and leaders of his coalition partners, pledged to protect India's constitution.
Modi was followed by senior ministers from the previous government – Rajnath Singh, Amit Shah, Nitin Gadkari, Nirmala Sitharaman, Subrahmanyam Jaishankar and Piyush Goyal, among others – whose portfolios are yet to be announced.
Modi, who started out as a publicist for the Hindu nationalist Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), the ideological father of his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), is only the second person, after independence leader Jawaharlal Nehru, to serve a third consecutive term as prime minister. .
He won the third term after a multi-stage election that concluded on June 1 with the support of 14 regional parties of his BJP-led National Democratic Alliance. In the two previous terms, his party had obtained an absolute majority.
Challenges ahead
Despite the united front, political analyst Zoya Hasan of New Delhi-based Jawaharlal Nehru University told the AFP news agency that Modi's new coalition alliances could lead to friction in the future.
“Chandrababu Naidu and Nitish Kumar are astute politicians. So, in some way, Modi might find his match in these two,” he said, referring to two BJP allies who do not share the BJP's nationalist agenda.
“They have friends across the hall. And the opposition will surely court them,” Hasan said.
Modi is also under pressure to ensure that India's economic disparity does not widen.
India's economy grew 8.2 percent in the last fiscal year, one of the fastest rates among major economies.
But domestically, a lack of enough jobs, high prices, low incomes and religious divisions pushed voters to stop it.
“The middle class is the driving force of the country,” Modi said at an alliance meeting on Friday.
“In the coming days, we will work to increase middle class savings, improve their quality of life and see what needs to change in our rules to achieve this.”
