Chandrababu Naidu's oath as Andhra Chief Minister pushed to June 12: Sources
Telugu Desam Party chief Chandrababu Naidu's swearing-in as the Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh has been pushed to June 12, sources told India Today. Earlier, he was expected to take the oath on June 9.
The change in date came due to Narendra Modi taking the oath as the Prime Minister of India for a record third term on Saturday (June 8). Modi resigned on Wednesday and submitted his letter to President Droupadi Murmu ahead of his oath ceremony, which is likely to take place in the evening. The President accepted his resignation as the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers, and urged him to continue in his post till the new government assumed office.
Chandrababu Naidu has emerged as one of the kingmakers in the National Democratic Alliance (NDA)'s record third straight victory. He and Janata Dal (United) President and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar played crucial roles in ensuring the tide remains in favour of the alliance as the BJP failed to get a majority on its own in the face of a stellar performance by the Opposition-led INDIA bloc.
Amid attempts by the INDIA bloc to bring the TDP chief on their side in the aftermath of the Lok Sabha election results, Chandrababu Naidu reaffirmed his decision to "firmly stay" with the BJP-led NDA. The TDP put up an impressive show in Andhra Pradesh, ousting Jagan Mohan Reddy's YSRCP that shrunk to only 11 seats in the Assembly elections.
Meanwhile, Narendra Modi on Wednesday chaired a meeting of the Union Cabinet to take stock of the Lok Sabha election results and also discussed matters pertaining to the formation of the new government, sources said. This was the last meeting of the Modi 2.0 Cabinet and Council of Ministers.
Later in the evening, Modi chaired an NDA meeting to deliberate on the details of government formation. Chandrababu Naidu is most likely looking for Lok Sabha Speaker's post in the new government at the Centre, sources said. It is also believed the TDP supremo is eyeing seven to eight Cabinet and one MoS berths. These include Road Transport, Rural Development, Health, Housing & Urban Affairs, Agriculture, Jal Shakti, IT & Comms, Education and Finance (MoS).
