Narendra Modi, unanimously elected leader of the BJP Legislature Party, took oath as Chief Minister of Gujarat for a third term at the Sardar Patel Stadium in Ahmedabad on Tuesday.His swearing-in ceremony, coinciding with former Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee's birthday, was attended by senior leaders, including L K Advani and Rajnath Singh, and Chief Ministers of BJP and NDA-ruled states - Chhattisgarh, Uttrakhand, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar and Orissa.Among others who attended the ceremony on Tuesday afternoon were George Fernandes, J Jayalalithaa, Murli Manohar Joshi, Sushma Swaraj, Venkaiah Naidu, Arun Jaitley, Jaya Jaitley, Shiv Sena leader Manohar Joshi, Akali Dal leader Sukhbir Singh Badal, former Haryana Chief Minister Om Prakash Chautala and Bihar's Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi.Immediately after taking oath, Modi walked to the leaders to meet them.Later, accompanied by Advani and Rajnath Singh, he took a round of the stadium, that was choc-a-bloc with people, in an open jeep.A large number of BJP activists were present in the stadium, waving the party flag and shouting slogans backing Modi.Modi was on Monday unanimously elected as the leader of the Gujarat BJP Legislature Party for a third consecutive term.By leading the party in Gujarat for a second successive and spectacular win in the Assembly polls, Modi has achieved a feat unparalleled in the saffron brotherhood.Modi, who has already earned the distinction of being the longest serving Chief Minister of the prosperous western state, faced the first polls in 2002 just one year after taking over the helm of affairs from Keshubhai Patel.
