India: Narendra Modi was sworn in for a third term, surrounded by his allies

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi loaned sworn in on Sunday for a third term, after mixed electoral results which make him dependent on a vast coalition to govern the country more populated of the world.

Accompanied by officials from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), his Hindu nationalist party, and leaders of allied parties, Narendra Modi, who has held his position since 2014, pledged to protect the Indian Constitution, during of the ceremony at the Presidential Palace in New Delhi.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his swearing-in for a third term on June 9, 2024 in New Delhi © AFP – Money SHARMA

Thousands of people, including Bollywood stars like Indian cinema legend Shahrukh Khan and wealthy businessmen close to Mr. Modi, 73, were present for the occasion.

But if the leaders of the neighboring states of Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and the Maldives had made the trip, the rival nations of China and Pakistan were not represented at the highest level.

– A multi-party government –

The composition of the new government has not yet been officially announced, the Prime Minister's office having simply clarified that it would have 71 members in addition to itself, including 11 leaders of partner parties of the BJP.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi (C) during his swearing-in for a third term on June 9, 2024 in New Delhi © AFP – Money SHARMA

Narendra Modi's party won 240 seats in Parliament – 32 more were needed to achieve an absolute majority -, significantly below the 303 obtained in 2019. And, against all expectations, the Congress, the main opposition party, acquired 99, almost doubling its 2019 score (52).

Narendra Modi was forced to enter into talks with his allies within the National Democratic Alliance (the NDA which brings together 15 parties in total).

In an article published on his website on Sunday, he described the last few days as “very busy”. “We are in the midst of preparations for the formation of the government”, he also wrote

The coalition has an absolute majority with 293 of the 543 seats in Parliament but several partner parties of the BJP have demanded substantial concessions, including top ministerial portfolios, in exchange for their support.

The most important, including the four sovereign ministries (Interior, Foreign Affairs, Finance and Defense), should nevertheless remain in the hands of the BJP, wrote the daily The Times of India.

– “More consultations” –

Analysts say the other members of the coalition will force the once-powerful Bharatiya Janata Party to take a slightly more conciliatory approach.

“The coalition will henceforth force the BJP to engage in more consultations”, said Sajjan Kumar, director of the political research group PRACCIS, based in the Indian capital.

Supporters of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi after his swearing in for a third term, June 9, 2024 in New Delhi © AFP – Niharika KULKARNI

For Zoya Hasan, political scientist at Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Delhi, Narendra Modi will face significant challenges and will have to deal with “cunning politicians” like Chandrababu Naidu, who heads both the State of Andhra Pradesh (southeast) and the Telugu Desam Party (TDP), and Nitish Kumar, at the head of the state of Bihar (east).

Rahul Gandhi, the main political opponent of the Hindu nationalist leader, was unanimously appointed on Saturday to lead the Indian opposition in Parliament by the leadership of the Congress party, which achieved its best result since 2014.

A first since 2014, the Congress party of the Nehru-Gandhi political dynasty, which has long dominated the political life of the country, having not reached the previous legislative the required percentage of 10% of the seats in the lower house to appoint a leader of the opposition.

Moreover, a sign that religious tensions are still very great in India, armed men ambushed a bus carrying Hindu pilgrims in the Kashmir region it administers and the vehicle then fell into a ravine, killing at least nine people, the country announced on Sunday. font.

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