Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated HD Kumaraswamy and G Parameshwara on Wednesday for becoming the Chief Minister and the deputy Chief Minister, respectively, of Karnataka.

The PM then took to Twitter to wish the 58-year-old Karnataka state chief of Janata Dal (Secular) who took oath of office today at 4.30 pm in a ceremony at Vidhan Soudha in Bengaluru which was attended by the top leaders of all anti-BJP parties of the country.

In his message posted on Twitter the PM wrote, “I congratulate Shri @hd_kumaraswamy Ji and @DrParameshwara Ji on taking oath as Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister of Karnataka. My best wishes for their tenure ahead.”

I congratulate Shri @hd_kumaraswamy Ji and @DrParameshwara Ji on taking oath as Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister of Karnataka. My best wishes for their tenure ahead.

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) May 23, 2018

According to reports, the PM also spoke to Kumaraswamy on phone to convey his congratulations.

At a press conference following his swearing-in ceremony, Kumaraswamy said that the presence of the leaders from all over the country sent across a message of political unity ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

“Leaders who came from all over country wanted to give a message to the nation that we are one and in 2019 there will be a major change in political situation,” he told reporters, while expressing confidence that the local Congress and JD(S) leaders will ensure the stability of the state government.

Kumaraswamy, whose party JD(S) formed an alliance government in the state with the Congress, took the oath administered by Governor Vajubhai Vala. While the JD(S) have 38 seats with ally BSP, the Congress have 78 in their bag. The BJP, which emerged as the single largest party with 104 seats, could not form the government as it was short of majority.

G Paramweshwara, the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) chief, took the oath of office of the deputy Chief Minister of Karnataka. His name was finalised after a hectic round of meetings between the leaders of the two parties on Tuesday.

The highlight of Kumaraswamy’s swearing-in was the presence of India’s biggest political names including Congress president Rahul Gandhi, UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi, BSP chief Mayawati, RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav, Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav, West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee, TDP chief and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury and other big names from India’s political arena.

Read More: HD Kumaraswamy takes oath, Opposition leaders display massive show of strength

Amid exchange of handshakes and namaskars, embraces and victory signs, the informal ‘secular alliance’ from the all corners of India presented the biggest ever show of strength in India’s politics since the arrival of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to power in 2014.

All of the leaders present on the occasion clasped each others’ hands and raised them in the air before a huge gathering of their supporters who arrived at the venue to witness the ceremony despite rain beating down on the city.