In a spirited address at the NDA Parliamentary Party meeting on Friday, Prime Minister-designate Narendra Modi praised Jana Sena Party (JSP) chief Pawan Kalyan, referring to him as an “aandhi” (storm) in recognition of his party’s remarkable performance in the recent Lok Sabha and Assembly elections in Andhra Pradesh.
Pawan Kalyan’s JSP demonstrated significant electoral strength by winning both Lok Sabha seats it contested. Additionally, in the Assembly elections, the JSP emerged as the second-largest party, securing victories in all 21 seats it contested. The JSP fought these elections as part of an alliance with the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
Modi’s commendation of Pawan Kalyan reflects the NDA’s appreciation of its allies’ contributions. “Pawan Kalyan’s impact on Andhra Pradesh’s political landscape is nothing short of an ‘aandhi’. His leadership and the JSP’s performance have been commendable,” Modi stated.
In his address, Modi also lauded actor-turned-politician Suresh Gopi for his historic achievement, becoming the first BJP Member of Parliament from Kerala.
Modi expressed gratitude for being unanimously chosen as the leader of the NDA, emphasizing the importance of unity in decision-making. “I am very fortunate that all of you have unanimously chosen me as the leader of NDA. You all have given me a new responsibility, and I am very grateful to you,” he said. Reflecting on his previous term, Modi added, “When I was speaking in this House in 2019, you all chose me as the leader, then I emphasized one thing which is trust. Today, when you are giving me this role, it means that the bridge of trust between us is strong. This relationship is on a strong foundation of trust, and this is the biggest asset.”
Modi declared the NDA to be the most successful alliance in India’s history and reiterated the goal of achieving unanimity in all decisions. “This is the most successful alliance in India’s history; our aim will be to reach unanimity in all our decisions,” he further emphasized.
The NDA MPs meeting, held at the Parliament, saw attendance from several key leaders, including Janata Dal-Secular leader HD Kumaraswamy, JD(U) chief Nitish Kumar, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) Chief Ajit Pawar, Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) Chief Chirag Paswan, and Jana Sena Party chief Pawan Kalyan, among others.
Earlier this week, leaders of the parties in the NDA convened a meeting and passed a resolution to elect Narendra Modi as their leader. According to reports, Narendra Modi is likely to take the oath as Prime Minister for the third consecutive time on June 9.