Even before Prime Minister Narendra Modi entered the Lok Sabha hall in the new Parliament building on Sunday, the chamber reverberated with the claps and chants of "Modi, Modi" by ruling NDA members as huge screens installed inside showed his arrival at the entrance.
As the prime minister stepped into the hall, the adulation grew louder with occasional slogans of "Bharat Mata ki Jai" and "Shivaji Maharaj ki Jai".
The applause continued till Modi, accompanied by Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla and Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairperson Harivansh, reached the dais and the ceremony formally began.
Modi acknowledged several dignitaries, including Supreme Court judges, former president Ram Nath Kovind and former prime minister H D Deve Gowda, as he proceeded towards the dais.
Before his arrival, a number of MPs and some other members of the audience in the hall, including chief ministers, were seen walking to Home Minister Amit Shah and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath to greet them. Quite a few of them could be seen taking selfies with the two powerful BJP leaders.
Many of them also moved to greet veteran party leader Murli Manohar Joshi and former speaker Sumitra Mahajan.
Shiv Sena members stood out in the crowd as several of them sported colourful turbans.
