Narendra Modi ushers in second term as Prime Minister

Narendra Modi

Narendra Modi, who decimated the Opposition to lead his party BJP to a landslide win in the recent Lok Sabha election, has become the first prime minister in nearly 50 years to win a majority in consecutive polls.

The 68-year-old Modi is set to take oath as the Prime Minister of India for the second consecutive term today. President Ram Nath Kovind will administer the oath of office and secrecy at the function.

Born on September 17, 1950, Modi, the three-time Chief Minister of Gujarat (2001-2014) fought and won the 2014 general election to become Prime Minister. With the 2019 Lok Sabha poll victory, he has become the first Prime Minister outside of the Congress to win two consecutive terms with a full majority since 1971.

This time around, the BJP rode on muscular nationalism, national security and a strident anti-Congress plank under the leadership of Modi to storm back to power with 303 seats in the Lok Sabha.

In his first term as PM, his National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government launched several flagship schemes including the Swachh Bharat Mission, the Ayushman Bharat Yojana and the Pradhan Mantri Ujwala Yojana and the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana among others. He also introduced demonetisation the Goods and Service Tax (GST).

Often termed as the 'People's Leader', Prime Minister Modi, a brilliant orator, is known for his powerful personal connect with the people on the ground. In the just concluded mammoth elections, Modi plunged headlong into campaigning, addressing 142 rallies and conducting four roadshows. The election results showed that the BJP gained 21 new seats.

The BJP, which won 282 seats in 2014, improved its tally by notching up 303 seats. Along with its NDA allies, the number swelled to 353 in the 543-member Lower House of the Parliament.

Ever since Modi became Prime Minister his party has formed governments in Assam and Tripura and has emerged as a force to reckon with in states like Odisha and West Bengal.

On the foreign policy front, his initiatives have realised the true potential and role of India on the world stage. He began his term in office in presence of all heads of States of SAARC Nations. His address to the General Assembly of United Nations was appreciated by many.

Later on, he became the first Indian Prime Minister to embark on a bilateral visit to Nepal after a long period of 17 years, to Australia after 28 years, to Fiji after 31 years and Seychelles after 34 years.

During his first regime, Narendra Modi attended UN, BRICS, SAARC and G-20 Summits, where India's views on a variety of global economic and political issues, especially terrorism, were widely appreciated.

Modi managed to carve out personal equations with world leaders including with US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping.

During his visits abroad he actively sold Brand India, articulating a leadership role for India in the world and also leveraging the vast Indian diaspora to national causes

This time around, Modi has reached out to BIMSTEC (Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation) member-states, whose leaders have confirmed their attendance for his swearing-in ceremony. The bloc's member nations include Bangladesh, Bhutan, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka, and Thailand besides India.

Modi also paid tribute to Mahatma Gandhi and former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee ahead of his swearing-in ceremony today evening. He also visited the National War Memorial and paid tribute to the jawans who laid down their lives for the country post-independence.

President of Myanmar U Win Myint, President of Bangladesh Abdul Hamid, Prime Minister of Bhutan Lotay Tshering, President of Sri Lanka Maithripala Sirisena, Prime Minister of Nepal KP Sharma Oli, and Thailand's Special Envoy Grisada Boonrach will be present in Delhi for attending the ceremony. The President of Kyrgyzstan, Sooronbay Jeenbekov, along with the Prime Minister of Mauritius, Pravind Kumar Jugnauth, will also be present at the event.

Mauritius Prime Minister Pravind Kumar Jugnauth on Thursday morning arrived early on Thursday to attend the swearing-in ceremony of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Jugnauth was received by Foreign Secretary Vijay Gokhale.

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Edited by mid-day online desk with inputs from Agencies