Narendra Modi attends first press conference as PM, says BJP will return to power on its own; Amit Shah takes all questions

Prime Minister Narendra Modi surprised journalists on Friday as he attended a scheduled press conference by BJP president Amit Shah. Modi asserted confidently that the BJP will come back to power with a full majority on its own. The prime minister said, “Throughout my campaign, until my last rally, I emphasised on telling the people that I had come before them to thank them for the blessings that they gave me.” [caption id=“attachment_6653221” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Prime Minister Narendra Modi with BJP President Amit Shah during a press conference at the party headquarter in New Delhi. PTI[/caption] He also said that the tenure of an honest government began on 17 May, 2014, a day after Lok Sabha election results were announced. Modi further said,“During the last election, even IPL couldn’t be held. When government is strong, IPL, Ramzan, school exams and other events take place peacefully.” He told reporters that he will not take any questions because the press conference is being addressed by Shah, and in BJP’s system, discipline has to be followed. “We are disciplined soldiers of the party,” Modi said. Shah, during the press conference, gave a detailed report card of the campaigning as well as the performance of the NDA government in the last five years. On the Opposition’s allegations that both Modi and Shah were responsible for lowering the political discourse during the campaigning, the BJP president said, “What else do you expect from the opposition?” Shah also said that the BJP has never initiated a debate of a coarse nature. On remarks made by BJP Bhopal candidate Pragya Singh Thakur terming Nathuram Godse a patriot, Shah said, “The party has served her a show-cause notice and asked her to reply within ten days. After she files a reply, the party’s disciplinary committee will take appropriate action.” Follow live updates on the Lok Sabha Election 2019 here