Newly elected MPs of the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) convened at the Parliament complex on Friday to elect Narendra Modi as their leader, paving the way for him to be sworn in as prime minister for a third term. Senior leaders of the alliance, including chief ministers, joined the meeting where BJP president J P Nadda proposed a resolution in support of Modi's leadership, expected to be endorsed by allies and MPs.

Once elected as the leader of NDA MPs, senior members of the alliance such as TDP's N Chandrababu Naidu, JD(U)'s Nitish Kumar, and Shiv Sena's Eknath Shinde will accompany the prime minister to meet President Droupadi Murmu. They will present her with the list of parliamentarians supporting Modi.

Sources indicated that the swearing-in ceremony is likely to be held on Sunday. The NDA, with 293 MPs, comfortably exceeds the majority mark of 272 in the 543-member Lok Sabha.

Senior BJP leaders, including Amit Shah, Rajnath Singh, and J P Nadda, have been engaged in discussions with allies to finalize the allocation of ministerial berths in the new government. The distribution of ministerial positions will be crucial for maintaining the ruling coalition's stability.

Following the June 4 election results, the BJP leadership swiftly moved towards forming the government to dispel any uncertainty after the setback to the ruling party, which lost its majority for the first time since 2014. The BJP now relies on the support of its allies to retain power.

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