If NDA wins, Modi may take oath in Varanasi

April 26, 2019 16:58

If the NDA government headed by PM Narendra Modi wins a second term on May 23, Varanasi, which is the PM's Lok Sabha constituency may be in the spotlight as the venue where he will be sworn in.

The other venue being considered by the party, if legal experts give the go-ahead, is at the forecourt of the Rashtrapati Bhavan, the venue in 2014. The feasibility is being considered by intelligence and security agencies as well.

In 2014, Narendra Modi was sworn-in in the presence of seven heads of state of SAARC countries. But sources tell us that Modi wants Hindu overtones when he assumes office in 2019 and accordingly, he may be sworn in to the hum of Vedic mantras on the banks of the Ganga in Varanasi with President Ram Nath Kovind administering the oath of office.

The precedent has already been set by chief ministers who were sworn in outside state capitals, like Haryana Chief Minister ML Khattar being sworn-in at the Haryana Bhavan in Delhi.

Experts say there is no legal impediment to the investiture ceremony being held at Varanasi. Yes, it may be a break in tradition, but protocol is not an impediment.

Bureaucrats also feel that while it is a political decision, Modi has been of the view that Delhi should be decentralised. World leaders used to be accorded a reception in Delhi, but Modi changed it. Chinese and Japanese heads of states landed first in Gandhinagar in Gujarat. DGP and Chief Secretaries annual conferences were held only in Delhi, but are now being held at various state capitals.

The decision on the venue will be revealed in on May 25 once a clear picture emerges of whether the NDA is indeed getting a majority, even as a blueprint is being prepared by close confidants of the PM.

Watch this space.

-- R Rajagopalan

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