Amid jubilation in the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) over the exit polls results, party president Amit Shah is hosting a dinner for the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) partners in New Delhi tonight.
The exit polls have projected a landslide victory for the BJP-led NDA government, which will mean a second consecutive term for Narendra Modi as the Prime Minister. The dinner is being hosted at Hotel Ashoka in a bid to strategize the future course of action for the alliance.
#LIVE on #ArnabOnMay23 | PM Modi arrives at BJP HQ ahead of the dinner for NDA leaders being hosted by party chief Amit Shah. Tune in to watch here – https://t.co/LGCyJUEBn5 pic.twitter.com/F25XoQaBnB
— Republic (@republic) May 21, 2019
Ahead of the dinner, Shah and PM Modi met the Union council of ministers to thank them for their service to the nation. Leaders from the BJP who marked their presence include Rajnath Singh, Nitin Gadkari, Arun Jaitley, J P Nadda and Prakash Javadekar. Ministers from NDA including Ram Vilas Paswan of the Lok Janshakti Party, Harsimrat Kaur Badal from the Akali Dal and Anupriya Patel of the Apna Dal also attended the meeting.
The meeting was scheduled ahead of the counting of votes for the Lok Sabha election on May 23. If exit poll results are to be believed, NDA is set to form the new government with numbers well above the majority mark.
Delhi: Visuals from Ashoka Hotel where NDA leaders dinner is underway. PM Narendra Modi felicitated by alliance leaders pic.twitter.com/63apZhSGNG
— ANI (@ANI) May 21, 2019
Twelve of 14 exit polls have predicted full majority for the NDA giving them seats ranging between 282 to 365. A party or alliance needs 272 out of 543 seats in Lok Sabha to form the government.
In 2014, the NDA had won 336 seats while Congress had managed 44. The BJP had scored its first majority by bagging 282 seats.
Elections for the 542 seats of the 543-member Lok Sabha concluded on Sunday.
Ever since exit polls have predicted a second consecutive term for BJP-led NDA government in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, opposition parties seem to have lost their sleep and peace.