Colours of consensus on the forecourt

Focus now on the road ahead: First 100 days set to shape governance post-election strain

- NIVEDITA MOOKERJI

The historic forecourt of the majestic Rashtrapati Bhavan on Sunday evening witnessed a range of emotions at the oath-taking ceremony of the new Council of Ministers of the 18th Lok Sabha (LS). While most of the big names in the Modi 2.0 government have made it to Modi 3.0, there was an air of coalition at the ceremony-bigger in scale than the previous two times with around 10,000 guests, including seven world leaders from "friendly" neighbouring countries, delegates, captains of Corporate India such as Mukesh Ambani, Kumar Mangalam Birla, and Gautam Adani, and Bollywood celebrities like Shah Rukh Khan, Raveena Tandon, and Akshay Kumar.

Long before buglers heralded the arrival of President Droupadi Murmu and the forecourt reverberated with the strains of the National Anthem, the celebrations had begun with a sea of selfies early in the evening against the stunning backdrop.

Crowds had spotted Hema Malini, the 'Dream Girl' who went into politics and won the Mathura seat recently, and then Kangana Ranaut in a breezy crème sari. She won in Himachal Pradesh.

Despite not being named in the new Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led National Democratic Alliance government's list of ministers, outgoing Union minister Anurag Thakur was present at the ceremony and had earlier in the day expressed his unwavering commitment to the party and its mission.

The hot evening was cooled by mist fans and water dispensers at regular intervals. But the temperature soared despite the cooling devices as Narendra Modi arrived in a black Range Rover to take the oath for a third term as Prime Minister (PM).