PM Modi to be sworn in on May 30, speculation over allocation of ministries

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his council of ministers will take oath of office at 7 pm on May 30, the Rashtrapati Bhavan said on Sunday.

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president Amit Shah is likely to get a prime slot in the council of ministers, Business Standard reported last week. Shah, who has debuted in the Lok Sabha, could join the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) of the second Modi government, sources said. Apart from the prime minister, the CCS comprises the top four of the government – defence, home, external affairs and finance ministers.

Jaitley met the top officers of his ministry on Friday to discuss the budget, but concerns remain if his health will permit him to handle ministry at a juncture for the economy. 

It remains to be seen if Nirmala Sitharaman, who ably defended the government on the alleged irregularities in the Rafale fighter jet deal, would continue to remain defence minister, and whether Railway Minister Piyush Goyal, who has emerged the government’s crisis manager, gets a more high-profile portfolio.

Modi’s BJP won 303 of the 542 seats up for grabs in the general elections, up from the 282 it won in 2014 and more than the 272 seats needed for a majority in the lower house of parliament.

At the BJP’s victory celebrations in New Delhi Thursday evening, Modi appealed to his workers to exhibit humility in what is the “greatest electoral triumph since the independence in 1947”.

“We have to move ahead. We have to take everyone with us, even our opponents. We have to work for the benefit of the country,” he said, adding he would not do anything with bad intent even though he might at times commit a mistake on the job.

BJP president Amit Shah and National Democratic Alliance leaders met President Ram Nath Kovind at the Rashtrapati Bhavan on Saturday and gave him a letter stating Modi has been elected the leader of the BJP Parliamentary Party.

"The President (Ram Nath Kovind) will administer the Oath of Office and Secrecy to the Prime Minister and other members of Union Council of Ministers on 30.05.2019 at 07.00 p.m. at Rashtrapati Bhavan," said a communiuqe issued by President's press secretary Ashok Malik on Sunday.