'Main Narendra Damodardas Modi...': PM Sworn In For Record Third Term, A New Chapter Begins With NDA

Narendra Modi was sworn in as India's Prime Minister for the third consecutive term on Sunday at Rashtrapati Bhavan. President Droupadi Murmu administered the oath of office. Several MPs from the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), including the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Telugu Desam Party (TDP), Janata Dal (United) (JDU), and other allies, also took oath as cabinet ministers.

Among the cabinet ministers who took oath were Amit Shah, JP Nadda, Nitin Gadkari, Rajnath Singh, and Piyush Goyal from the BJP. Chandrasekhar Pemmmasani and Kinarapu Ram Mohan Naidu from the TDP, H.D. Kumaraswamy from the JD(S), and Chirag Paswan from LJP-R were among other NDA allies sworn in as Union cabinet ministers.

The event was attended by leaders from neighboring countries, including Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, Bhutan PM Tshering Togbay, and Nepal PM Pushp Kamal Dahal 'Prachanda'. Maldivian President Mohamed Muizzu, Mauritian Prime Minister Pravind Kumar Jugnauth, and Vice-President of Seychelles, Ahmed Afif, were among the leaders from the Indian Ocean region who attended the oath-taking ceremony.

From the opposition camp, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge was in attendance, while Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee said she would not attend the event.

The BJP-led NDA is back for a third term at the Centre, but unlike its two previous terms where it swept a clean majority, the saffron party was limited to 249 seats this time and had to rely on allies like TDP and JD(U). On the flip side, the opposition came back stronger in the election this year with Congress securing 99 seats while Samajwadi Party swept the key states of Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, and Rajasthan.

Notably, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) did not secure a majority this time and is forming the government with the support of its National Democratic Alliance (NDA) partners. Consequently, some NDA allies will also get cabinet positions, leading to the exclusion of some key BJP leaders such as Smriti Irani and Rajeev Chandrashekar. Here is a list of those who will not be part of the Modi cabinet this time.