Modi, Striking a Modest Tone, Is Sworn In for a Third Term
Prime Minister Narendra Modi was sworn in for a third term on Thursday, promising to work for the “poor, the downtrodden and the marginalized” as he took the oath of office in a ceremony that was scaled back because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Mr. Modi, 70, was sworn in at the Rashtrapati Bhavan, the presidential palace in New Delhi, in a ceremony that was attended by President Ram Nath Kovind, Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu and other dignitaries.
The ceremony was a far cry from the grand spectacle that accompanied Mr. Modi’s first two swearing-in ceremonies in 2014 and 2019, when thousands of people gathered to watch the event. This time, the ceremony was held in a large courtyard, with social distancing measures in place.
Mr. Modi, who led the Bharatiya Janata Party to a landslide victory in the general election in April and May, will be sworn in along with 46 other members of his cabinet.
In his speech, Mr. Modi said that his government would work to ensure that the benefits of development reached the poor and marginalized.
“We will work for the poor, the downtrodden and the marginalized,” he said. “We will work for the farmers, the laborers, the youth and the women of this country.”
Mr. Modi also thanked the people of India for their support and said that he was humbled by the trust they had placed in him.
“I am humbled by the trust that the people of India have placed in me,” he said. “I am grateful to the people of India for giving me the opportunity to serve them for another term.”
Mr. Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party won 303 seats in the general election, giving it a majority in the Lok Sabha, the lower house of Parliament. The party’s allies won an additional 85 seats, bringing the total number of seats held by the National Democratic Alliance to 388 out of a total of 543.