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The NDA won 293 seats in the recently concluded Lok Sabha elections.

Narendra Modi will now take oath as the Prime Minister for the third straight time on Sunday evening. Sources had earlier said that the oath-taking would take place on Saturday.  

Mr Modi had been chosen as the head of the NDA on Wednesday, setting the stage for him to take oath as the Prime Minister for the third straight time – becoming only the second Indian to do so after Jawaharlal Nehru. 

Several South Asian leaders have been invited to the oath-taking ceremony and Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina and Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe have already confirmed their presence. Invitations have also been sent to Nepal Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’, his Bhutan counterpart Tshering Tobgay and Mauritius PM Pravind Jugnauth.

In the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, results for which were declared on Tuesday, the BJP was reduced to 240 seats from its overwhelming majority of 303 in 2019. The NDA, which had won 352 constituencies last time, has also come down to 293, but is above the majority mark of 272.

This means that PM Modi and the BJP are relying on their allies to be able to form the government – a situation neither has faced since 2014. The two biggest partners are Chandrababu Naidu’s Telugu Desam Party, which has got 16 seats, and Nitish Kumar’s Janata Dal United, which has garnered 12.  

Both Mr Naidu and Mr Kumar, who have also aligned with the Congress in the past, are learnt to have made certain demands in exchange for their support. Apart from representation in the Cabinet and certain ministries, both parties have put forth other conditions as well. 

The TDP has asked for the Lok Sabha Speaker’s post, which, sources said, the BJP is unlikely to concede. It may offer the Deputy Speaker position instead. 

JDU sources said the party may demand a Common Minimum Programme for the NDA and for Mr Kumar to lead a committee to implement it, if and when the panel is formed. 

The big four ministries – Home, Defence, Finance and External Affairs – are also expected to be retained by the BJP.