Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to take the oath of office for the third time on Saturday, becoming the first leader since Jawaharlal Nehru to serve three terms. Modi met with President Droupadi Murmu at Rashtrapati Bhavan to tender his resignation along with his cabinet, after which he was asked to continue until the swearing-in ceremony.

Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which won 282 seats in 2014 and 303 in 2019, secured 240 seats in the latest election, 32 short of the 272 required for a majority. The BJP will now depend on the 53 seats won by its National Democratic Alliance (NDA) partners to form the government.

Modi retained his seat in Uttar Pradesh's Varanasi, defeating Congress candidate Ajay Rai by less than 150,000 votes, securing his position as a three-time MP from the constituency.

Earlier, Modi chaired a final Union Cabinet meeting, affirming the NDA's intention to form the next government, calling the election results a "victory of the world's largest democracy."

The BJP set a target of 370 seats, including NDA partners, but was challenged by the Congress-led INDIA bloc, which secured 232 seats. The opposition's strong performance defied exit polls and reduced the BJP's advantage in several key states.

Despite setbacks, the BJP emerged as the single largest party, with significant wins in Odisha (20 of 21 seats), Andhra Pradesh (21 of 25), Madhya Pradesh (29 of 29), and Bihar (30 of 40). The party also achieved a milestone by winning its first-ever Lok Sabha seat in Kerala and doubling its seats in Telangana to eight, although it failed to win any seats in Tamil Nadu for the second consecutive election.

Addressing supporters at the BJP headquarters in Delhi, Modi expressed gratitude to the voters and assured continued progress. He highlighted the importance of Telugu Desam Party leader Chandrababu Naidu and Janata Dal (United) leader Nitish Kumar, who are influential figures in coalition politics.

The NDA's majority is precarious, as losing the 28 seats held by Naidu and Kumar would reduce its count to 265. The INDIA bloc is reportedly considering approaching these leaders to potentially disrupt the NDA's majority. While Nitish Kumar has not commented, Naidu confirmed his commitment to the NDA, saying, "I am in the NDA... am going for the meeting."

Both the NDA and INDIA are holding discussions in Delhi to analyze the election results and plan their future strategies.