Modi, 30 ministers to be sworn in today

Narendra Modi will take oath as India's Prime Minister for the third straight term on Sunday and while the entire council of ministers will not be sworn in, nearly 30 ministers will, sources have told NDTV. 

The strength of the full council of ministers is expected to be between 78 and 81.

Taking oath after PM Modi will be the top ministers of the government, including those who will hold the crucial portfolios of home, defence, finance and external affairs - all of which will continue to be held by the BJP. Others who are likely to be sworn in will include those who will be entrusted with critical infrastructure ministries like steel, civil aviation and coal.

The official time of the swearing-in ceremony is 7.15 to 8 pm, which means that it is expected to last 45 minutes. The ministers who will be taking oath are expected to get calls from the government beginning in the morning. 

BJP is short of a majority on its own for the first time in 10 years and this will reflect in the swearing-in ceremony and the composition of the cabinet. Allies, especially Chandrababu Naidu's Telugu Desam Party and Nitish Kumar's Janata Dal United, are pressing for more than one ministerial berth and other parties will need to be accommodated too.

The BJP and the Prime Minister were planning to reduce the number of ministers going forward but, sources said, very few members of the cabinet will hold more than one portfolio in the third iteration of the PM Modi-led cabinet.

Among the leaders taking oath tomorrow will be representatives of the BJP's NDA allies, some of whom are likely to get key ministries. Reports have said that the TDP is likely to get four ministerial posts and the JDU two, but it is not clear if all of them will be sworn in.

Several foreign leaders will be attending the event, including Sri Lanka President Ranil Wickremesinghe, Maldives President Mohamed Muizzu, Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, Mauritius PM Pravind Kumar Jugnauth, Nepal Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal 'Prachanda', Bhutan PM Tshering Tobgay and Seychelles Vice-President Ahmed Afif.