India’s Modi takes oath as prime minister for 2nd term

NEW DELHI

Indian President Ramnath Kovind on Thursday administered the oath of office and secrecy to Narendra Modi as prime minister for a second term, along with a team of 58 ministers at a grand ceremony, attended by 8,000 people.

The surprise inclusion in the cabinet was former Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar. He has been India’s envoy to the U.S. and China, thereby, a cornerstone of Modi’s foreign policy during his first tenure.

There are 20 first-timers inducted in the council of ministers. Notable among those, is the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) President Amit Shah.

Missing from the new cabinet are former External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, who stepped aside for health reasons.

The other big names not made ministers in Modi’s second term are Jagat Prakash Nadda, Rajyavardhan Rathore and Maneka Gandhi.

Out of 58 ministers who took oaths 25 are cabinet rank, nine ministers of state (independent charge) and 24 junior ministers, who will work under cabinet ministers.

There are six women, namely Nirmala Sitharaman, Harsimrat Kaur Badal, Smriti Irani, Debashri Choudhary, Renuka Singh and Niranjan Jyoti.

In the recently concluded elections, the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) returned to power with a massive haul of 352 seats in the 543-member Lok Sabha (lower house). The BJP won 303 seats on its own.

The ceremony was attended by foreign dignitaries including Kyrgyzstan's President Sooronbay Jeenbekov, Myanmar’s President U Win Myint, Sri Lanka’s President Maithripala Sirisena, Bangladeshi President Abdul Hamid, Nepal’s Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli, Prime Minister of Bhutan Lotay Tshering, Mauritius Prime Minister Pravind Jugnauth, and Thailand’s special envoy Grisada Boonrach.

Modi did not invite Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan, signifying that tense relations will continue between the countries.

After Modi took his oath, former BJP President Rajnath Singh, who held the home portfolio previously, was sworn in, indicating that he would continue to hold number two position in the government.

Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi is the lone Muslim in the cabinet. Hailing from Uttar Pradesh province, he is member of Rajya Sabha (upper house of parliament). He was in charge of the minority affairs ministry in the previous Modi government.

Just an hour before the ceremony, in an anti-climax of sorts, an important ally Janata Dal (United) decided not to join the government. Led by Bihar province's Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, the party was reportedly upset, as it was offered just one ministerial post. The JD (U) had won 16 of the 17 seats it contested, in alliance with the BJP.

Congress party leader Rahul Gandhi -- who led the main opposition that lost to Modi -- attended alongside his mother, Sonia Gandhi. Indian film celebrities Rajinikanth, Kangana Ranaut, Karan Johar, Anupam Kher, Shahid Kapoor, Boney Kapoor, Jeetendra, also attended the event.