In Pics: President appoints Narendra Modi as PM, swearing-in on May 26

New Delhi, May 20: President Pranab Mukherjee on Tuesday officially called Prime Minister- designate Narendra Modi to form government.

Modi met Mukherjee at Rashtrapati Bhavan and was invited to be sworn-in on May 26 as India's 14th prime minister.

Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Modi said, "The President has given me a letter...the oath taking ceremony will take place here (Rashtrapati Bhavan) on May 26 at 6 pm."

"I thank all of you," he told hundreds of media persons. He also showed them the letter that he received from the President.

During their meeting, both Modi and Mukherjee shook hands and exchanged bouquets.

The President congratulated Modi on his victory.

His meeting with the President came after the NDA leaders staked claim to form the next government.

According to a Rashtrapati Bhavan official, "The President has appointed Modi as the prime minister of India and requested him to advise other names for the cabinet."

Earlier in the day, Modi addressed the party MPs and other leaders in the Central Hall of Parliament, which he visited for the first time and where he went down on his knees to touch his forehead to the steps leading to it in reverence to the 'temple of democracy'.

He said the majority given to the BJP in the Lok Sabha was "a vote for hope and faith" and said his rise from humble origins was a tribute to the greatness of Indian democracy.

"A government should be one that works for the poor and this is why the new government is committed to the poor of the country and dedicated to the youth of the country as well as our mothers and daughters," said Modi, adding: "The celebrations, excitement will go on but the era of responsibility has begun."

The Modi-led BJP won a staggering 282 seats in the 545-member Lok Sabha, becoming the first non-Congress party since Independence to get a majority on its own.

Modi remembered former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, who is ailing, the freedom fighters and leaders who had drafted the constitution.

Referring to his humble origins, Modi said it was due to democracy in the country that he was "in the Central Hall today".

Modi said he never felt dejected. "Only optimistic people can enthuse others. We have to leave pessimism."

He said the BJP workers will have to dedicate themselves to the service of the 1.25 billion people of the country.

"Responsibility given by the organization has to be performed with a sense of purity," Modi said and added that he had done the same when he was declared prime ministerial candidate of the party in September last year.

Calling himself a disciplined soldier and vowing to work for the "poorest of the poor", Modi said he would present his government's report card in 2019, exactly five years from now.

Modi stressed that he should not be seen above the BJP and credited his party's stunning electoral victory to its organizational strength. Modi became emotional when he responded to Advani's remarks that he had done a favour by leading the BJP in the election, a move that Advani had initially opposed.

"Please don't use the word 'kripa' (favour)," Modi said. "A son doesn't do a favour to his mother. A son works with dedication. I treat the BJP as my mother just as India is my mother."

"The party has done me a favour by giving me an opportunity to serve."

Modi said it would be for the first time that the government would be formed under the leadership of a person who was born in Independent India.

"We did not get the chance to die for the country but people have given us a chance to live for the country. Every second and each part of the body should be used in the service of the country," Modi said.

Modi said he accepted the responsibility given to him. "You will never get an opportunity to look down on what my government will do."

BJP president Rajnath Singh described the moment as historic, and said this heralded an era in Indian politics that was dominated by the BJP, with all other parties pushed to a distant second as "others".

"This is an unprecedented, historic moment. Although the Janata Party secured a majority in 1977 and ousted the Congress, it was a conglomeration of various parties. The BJP is the first (non-Congress) party which has achieved this feat on its own," Singh said adding that it had made inroads in states such as Kerala and West Bengal where it had been a non-entity in the past.

Singh said he was "happy and thrilled" and described the day as the fruition of party ideologue Deendayal Upadhyaya's dream of a "strong, self-dependent, and free" India.

Following the meeting of the NDA, Modi was elected leader of the alliance in the Lok Sabha.

Here are some pics of Modi- Mukherjee meet:

President welcomes and congratulates Narendra Modi

Narendra Modi on Tuesday met President Pranab Mukherjee at Rashtrapati Bhavan and was invited to be sworn-in May 26 as India's 14th prime minister.

Prez congratulates Modi on"grand vioctory"

During their meeting, both Modi and Mukherjee shook hands and exchanged bouquets. The President congratulated Modi on his victory.

In Pics: President meets Narendra Modi

Modi's meeting with the President came after the NDA leaders staked claim to form the next government.

President formally appoints Modi as PM

According to a Rashtrapati Bhavan official, "The President has appointed Modi as the prime minister of India and requested him to advise other names for the cabinet."

In Pics: President meets Narendra Modi

On Tuesday, Modi bent his forehead and touched the steps before entering the building for the meeting of his party's parliamentary party, where he was elected its leader.

Modi to take as PM on May 26 at 6 pm

Narendra Modi shows to the media President Pranab Mukherjee's letter appointing him as the Prime Minister at Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi on Tuesday.

OneIndia News

(With agency inputs)