NEW DELHI: Despite 20 opposition parties boycotting the event, Prime Minister Narendra Modi opened India’s new parliament building.
Pre-inauguration rituals were underway on Sunday at 7:00 local time (02:00 GMT).
Additionally, Modi gave the parliament a sengol, a historically significant gold sceptre, the BBC said.
He unveiled a plaque that dedicates the structure to the country and is scheduled to speak later in the day. However, lawmakers from a number of significant opposition parties stayed away from the ceremony.
Twenty parties, including the major opposition Congress, declared last week that they had made the “collective decision” to abstain from the inauguration event.
They lambasted the administration for not inviting the president, Droupadi Murmu, to dedicate the new structure. Additionally, they criticised the choice to organise the event on the anniversary of the birth of Hindu nationalist philosopher VD Savarkar. While Savarkar is hailed as a hero by the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), opposition parties view him as a polarising figure.
The boycott has been described as a “disrespect of democracy” by the BJP.
The government’s ambitious plan to create the Central Vista complex, which will replace colonial-era structures in Delhi, includes constructing the new parliament building.
The new, four-story structure, which was constructed in front of the old parliament and is thought to have cost 9.7 billion rupees ($117.1 million, £94.2 million), has a larger seating capacity.
The Lok Sabha chamber, which will host the lower house of parliament, is modelled after the peacock, which is the national bird of India. The upper house’s chamber, known as Rajya Sabha, is shaped like the lotus, India’s emblematic flower.
The present parliament building is anticipated to be turned into a museum.
