Islamabad: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Monday congratulated his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi on his swearing in as the Prime Minister of India.
“Congratulations to @narendramodi on being sworn in as Prime Minister of India,” the Prime Minister tweeted on Shehbaz X’s personal account.
The ceremony honoring the Indian spouse of Pakistan’s prime minister came a day after he was sworn in as prime minister for a third term, continuing his ambitions.
Modi was sworn in on Sunday for a record-breaking third term as prime minister, but this time the Bharatiya Janata Party is not in a strong position to test its ability to command political confidence in the world’s most populous country.
The prime minister responded to Shehbaz’s post, thanking the 72-year-old: “For your kind words [Shehbaz Sharif].”
The 73-year-old also reciprocated the congratulations of former prime minister Nawaz Sharif. “Appreciate your message [Nawaz Sharif]. The people of India have always stood for peace, security and progressive ideas. Promoting the welfare and security of our people will always be our top priority,” Modi said in a post on X.
President Draupadi Murmu was sworn in at a ceremony at Rashtrapati Bhavan, the presidential palace in New Delhi, in the presence of thousands of dignitaries including the leaders of seven countries in the region, Bollywood stars and industrialists.
Modi, who started out as a publicist for the Indian nationalist Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) as the party’s ideological patriarch, is the second person to serve as the third prime minister after independence leader Jawaharlal Nehru.
Modi, 73, won a third term in the June 1 election with the support of 14 regional parties in the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA), unlike his previous two terms in which his party won a clear majority.
The result appeared to be a major setback for the populist leader as polls and opinion polls had predicted BP would win more seats than in 2019.
