Modi reveals firm BJP grip on NDA 3.0 govt

Modi takes oath as PM for 3rd term while Nadda joins Cabinet

By Manish Anand

New Delhi, June 9: With sun setting in the backdrop, Prime Minister Narendra Modi took oath for third term at the helm of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government at the Centre. Exuding confidence with cheerful chatting with colleague Rajnath Singh, Modi conveyed a firmness in leading the government for the record third term in a row.

The first eight members to take oath on Sunday evening belonged to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Former Chief Minister of Karnataka and the Janata Dal (Secular) leader, HD Kumaraswami, was the ninth member in the council of ministers to take oath.

At number five, the BJP president Jagat Prakash Nadda took oath as a Cabinet minister. He followed in the footsteps of his predecessor Amit Shah who also had joined the government after leading the BJP to a poll victory in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

Also Read:  NDA 3.0 begins on sore note as NCP skips oath ceremony 

Former chief ministers of Madhya Pradesh and Haryana Shivraj Singh Chauhan and Manohar Lal Khattar respectively joined the council of ministers headed by Modi. The Centre will now have four former CMs. Former Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal also retained his Cabinet berth at the Centre.

By becoming a minister at the Centre, the senior BJP leader, Dharmendra Pradhan, missed out from the race to become the chief minister of Odisha.

Also Read: In choice for Modi Cabinet, Nitish sends subtle message to BJP 

The BJP government in Odisha will take oath of office on June 12. The Andhra Pradesh government headed by the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) chief, N. Chandra Babu Naidu, will also be formed on June 12.

The BJP accorded a curious attention to the chief of the Hindustan Awami Party (HAM), Jitan Ram Manjhi, who took oath as a Cabinet Minister. Manjhi took oath ahead of the Janata Dal (United) leader Rajiv Ranjan Singh alias Laln Singh.

While Manjhi was seated in the first row, Lalan Singh occupied the second row in the box for the ministers who took oath in the forecourt of the Rashtrapati Bhavan.

With Nadda joining the Modi-headed Cabinet, former Union Minister Anurag Thakur exited the government. Thakur won the Hamirpur parliamentary seat.

Watch: #Podcast I Episode 6 I महाराष्ट्र का महा सबक I बीजेपी पर छाए संकट के बादल

Thakur was the Union Minister for Information and Broadcasting in the second tenure of the NDA government at the Centre. He was the chief spokesperson of the Union government.

Signalling a continuity in the government, Nirmala Sitharaman and Subhramanyam Jaishankar retained their Cabinet berths in the third term of the NDA government.

The swearing in ceremony of the new government was attended by the heads of the states from Bangladesh, Nepal, and Maldives. The NDA constituents’ heads also attended the ceremony.

Scores of celebrities from the business, entertainment, and art world also attended the oath taking ceremony.

Follow the WhatsApp channel of The Raisina Hills

Share on Facebook

Tweet

Follow us

Save

About The Author

Manish Anand

Manish Anand is a senior journalist with more than two decades of hardcore reporting on beats such as Prime Minister’s Office, Parliament, BJP, Congress, Planning Commission, NITI Aayog, and scores of Union Ministries.

His past has been with The New Indian Express, The Asian Age/Deccan Chronicle, and The Statesman.

For about 15 years, Manish was also a regular commentator and host for talks on AIR on foreign affairs.

See author's posts