India is likely to invite leaders of a number of its neighbouring countries, including Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, to the swearing-in ceremony of Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the weekend, it was learnt here.
Modi is all set to take charge as the prime minister for a historic third consecutive term with the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) winning 293 seats in the Lok Sabha polls.
Top leaders of Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Bhutan, Nepal and Mauritius are likely to be among the foreign leaders to be invited for Modi’s oath-taking ceremony.
The media division of Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe’s office said Modi invited him to the swearing-in ceremony. It said Wickremesinghe accepted the invite and congratulated Modi on the electoral victory in a phone call.
“During the conversation, Prime Minister @narendramodi invited President Wickremesinghe to his swearing-in ceremony, which President @RW_UNP accepted,” it said.
Modi also had a phone conversation with Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and invited her to attend his swearing-in ceremony which she accepted, sources said.
They said Nepalese Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’, Bhutanese Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay and Prime Minister of Mauritius Pravind Jugnauth are set to be invited to Modi’s swearing-in ceremony. Modi had a separate phone conversations with Prachanda. The formal invitations are set to be sent on Thursday, said one of the people cited above. Maldives President Mohammad Muizzu was also invited for the swearing-in ceremony, it was learnt.
The leaders of regional grouping SAARC (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation) countries attended Modi’s first swearing-in ceremony when he took the reins as the prime minister after a massive electoral victory for the BJP.
Leaders of the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation(BIMSTEC)countries attended Modi’s swearing-in ceremony in 2019 when he became prime minister for the second consecutive term. Modi is likely to take oath on June 8.
More than 50 world leaders including US President Joe Biden, Russian President Vladimir Putin, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, French President Emmanuel Macron and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu congratulated Prime Minister Modi for securing third consecutive term.
Prime Minister Modi on Thursday received a congratulatory telephone call from Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, Prime Minister’s Office(PMO)here said. Modi thanked his Australian counterpart for his wishes.
Modi warmly recalled his visit to Australia in 2023 and his meeting with Albanese on the sidelines of the G20 Summit last September in Delhi. Prime Minister reiterated his firm commitment to work together with the Australian Prime Minister to further strengthen the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, and work closely on the shared priorities in the Indo-Pacific region.
Singapore Prime Minister Lawrence Wong congratulated his India counterpart Narendra Modi and his ruling alliance on their electoral victory, saying he was looking forward to deepening ties between the two countries, PTI said from Singapore. In a post on social media platform X, Wong described Modi’s win, which secures a third consecutive term for him, as “historic”.
Wong said he was looking forward to working with Modi to deepen the Singapore-India partnership and to celebrate the 60th anniversary of diplomatic ties between the two countries in 2025.
“Congratulations @narendramodi on the historic victory by the NDA for the third consecutive term. Look forward to working with you to deepen the Singapore-India partnership and to celebrate the 60th anniversary of diplomatic ties next year.”
President Biden on Wednesday congratulated Modi on his electoral victory, with his administration saying that it was looking forward to continuing to further its partnership with India to promote prosperity and innovation, address the climate crisis and ensure a free and open Indo-Pacific region, PTI said from Washington.
Biden, who is currently travelling to France, personally made a phone call to Modi to congratulate him. “Congratulations to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the National Democratic Alliance on their victory, and the nearly 650 million voters in this historic election. The friendship between our nations is only growing as we unlock a shared future of unlimited potential,” he said in a social media post later.
“The friendship between our nations is only growing as we unlock a shared future of unlimited potential,” Biden said on X, which was soon followed by similar congratulatory messages by other senior members of his administration, including Secretary of State Tony Blinken.
In a post tagging Biden on X, Prime Minister Modi said he was happy to receive the call from his “friend”.
“Deeply value his warm words of felicitations and his appreciation for the Indian democracy. Conveyed that India-US Comprehensive Global Partnership is poised to witness many new landmarks in the years to come. Our partnership will continue to be a force for global good for the benefit of humanity,” Modi said.
In his replies to world leaders, including Putin and Sunak, in their congratulatory messages to him, Modi has underscored the strength of India’s relations with their countries and his commitment to further strengthening it.
