Newly elected lawmakers from India's ruling alliance led by the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party elected Narendra Modi as their leader on Saturday, paving the way for his second five-year term as prime minister after a thunderous victory in national elections.
BJP president Amit Shah announced Modi's name as the leader of the National Democratic Alliance in a meeting of the lawmakers in the Central Hall of Parliament in New Delhi.
The Election Commission announced that the BJP won 303 out of 542 seats in the Lok Sabha, the lower house of Parliament, after the official vote count from the six-week-long election was completed on Friday. That is well beyond the simple majority a party in India needs to form a government.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi addresses the media after meeting with the President to stake claim to form the government in New Delhi, India, Saturday, May 25, 2019. Newly elected lawmakers from India's ruling alliance led by the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party elected Narendra Modi as their leader on Saturday, paving the way for his second five-year term as prime minister after a thunderous victory in national elections. (AP PhotoManish Swarup)
The BJP's top rival, the Indian National Congress led by Rahul Gandhi, won 52 seats, and the All India Trinamool Congress led by West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee won 22.
Media reports say Modi is likely to be sworn in for his second term on Thursday.
Critics say Modi and his party have applied divisive policies and used a Hindu-first strategy. But Modi said after Saturday's vote that "this election has become a movement of social unity."
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi addresses the media after meeting with the President to stake claim to form the government in New Delhi, India, Saturday, May 25, 2019. Newly elected lawmakers from India's ruling alliance led by the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party elected Narendra Modi as their leader on Saturday, paving the way for his second five-year term as prime minister after a thunderous victory in national elections. (AP PhotoManish Swarup)
"It is generally said that the election divides, creates distances, makes walls. But the 2019 elections have worked to break the walls," he said in his address.
On Friday, Modi met with his outgoing Cabinet ministers and later presented his resignation to the country's president. The president asked the officials to continue to serve until the new government assumes office.
Gandhi, whose great-grandfather, grandmother and father were all prime ministers, personally conceded his seat, long a Congress party bastion, to his BJP rival, India's textiles minister, marking the end of an era for modern India's most powerful political dynasty.
Vote counting of the estimated 600 million ballots cast over six weeks of staggered polling — the world's largest democratic exercise — began early Thursday.
The victory was largely seen as a referendum on Modi's Hindu-first politics that some observers say have bred intolerance toward Muslims and other religious minorities, as well as his muscular stance on neighboring Pakistan, with whom India nearly went to war earlier this year after suicide attacks killed more than 40 Indian security officials in Indian-controlled Kashmir.
Modi effectively used the incident as a major campaign tool after responding to the attack with an airstrike in Pakistan that triggered nationalist sentiments, with the BJP saying Modi is the right person to ensure India's national security.
DETROIT (AP) — The Oakland Athletics no longer have to wonder where they'll play the next few seasons. That won't make the long goodbye any easier.
The A's reacted to the announcement that this will be their last year in Oakland with a mixture of sadness and relief.
“At least as a player, you know where you’re headed,” outfielder Seth Brown said Friday before a game against the Tigers in Detroit. “There’s obviously a lot of moving parts, a lot of stuff we’re not privy to, so it’s just been kind of a waiting game on our end. Where are we going to go? Where are we going to be? So I think just having that knowledge -- at least we know where we’re going to be playing next year.”
Vivek Ranadivé, who owns the Triple-A Sacramento River Cats, and Oakland Athletics owner John Fisher announced Thursday that the A’s will temporarily relocate to West Sacramento's Sutter Health Park for at least three seasons. The A's are moving to Las Vegas after a new ballpark is constructed.
The River Cats, who are affiliated with the San Francisco Giants, will continue to play at the same facility.
Fisher was unable to reach an agreement with Oakland city officials on extending the lease at Oakland Coliseum, which expires at the end of this season. The A's have played in the city since 1968.
“There's direction now, which we've talked a lot about,” Oakland A's manager Mark Kotsay said. “We've got time to kind of reflect on what this really means from an organizational standpoint, the history that we've had in Oakland, with this being now the final season. There's a lot of emotion that goes behind this.”
It will not only cause some upheaval for the players and staff but also members of the organization that work behind the scenes.
“At the end of the day, we know where we're going to be for the next three seasons after the finish this year and that in itself gives a little bit of stability,” Kotsay said. “At the same time, in the present, it's challenging in certain ways to think about the finality of this organization in Oakland.”
Sacramento will be a much smaller environment to house a major league team. Ranadivé said the River Cats venue currently seats 16,000 when counting the stands, the lawn behind center field and standing room only.
First baseman Ryan Noda is concerned with the facilities. He's hopeful that significant upgrades will be made, much like the Toronto Blue Jays did at Buffalo's Triple-A facility. The Blue Jays played at Buffalo's Sahlen Field in 2020 in 2021 during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“New walls, new dugouts, new locker rooms — everything they needed to become a big league stadium,” said Noda, who played some games in Sacramento as a minor leaguer. “As long as we can do something like that, then it'll be all right. But it's definitely going to be different than playing in stadiums that hold 40,000 people.”
Kotsay is confident the upgrades will occur.
“I know it will be of major league baseball quality,” he said. “It's has to be of major league baseball quality. I know the Players Association will make sure that takes place, as they did in Buffalo.”
For the rest of this season, the A's will have to deal with small home crowds and disappointed fans.
“We’re sad for the fans, the diehard fans, who always come to our games, always support us, always support the boys wearing the jersey,” Noda said.
AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb
Sacramento Kings owner Vivek Ranadive, center, shakes hands John Fisher, owner of the Oakland Athletics, before the start of a news conference where Fisher announced his team will leave Oakland after this season and play temporarily at a minor league park, during a news conference in West Sacramento, Calif., Thursday, April 4 2024.The A's announced the decision to play at the home of the Sacramento River Cats from 2025-27 with an option for 2028 on Thursday after being unable to reach an agreement to extend their lease in Oakland during that time. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli)
John Fisher, owner of the Oakland Athletics baseball team, announces that his team will leave Oakland after this season and play temporarily at a minor league park, during a news conference in West Sacramento, Calif., Thursday, April 4, 2024. The A's announced the decision to play at the home of the Sacramento River Cats from 2025-27 with an option for 2028 on Thursday after being unable to reach an agreement to extend their lease in Oakland during that time. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli)
Sutter Health Park, home of the Triple A team Sacramento River Cats, is shown in West Sacramento, Calif., Thursday, April 4, 2024. The Oakland Athletics announced the decision to play at the home of the Sacramento River Cats from 2025-27 with an option for 2028 on Thursday after being unable to reach an agreement to extend their lease in Oakland during that time. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli)
Oakland Athletics manager Mark Kotsay walks to the dugout after making a pitching change during the eighth inning of the team's baseball game against the Cleveland Guardians in Oakland, Calif., Sunday, March 31, 2024. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
