Union Minister Gadkari attends swearing-in ceremony of Iranian president Masoud Pezeshkian

New Delhi [India], July 30 (ANI): The Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways, Nitin Gadkari, attended the swearing-in ceremony of the President of Iran, Masoud Pezeshkian, on Tuesday.

The Union Minister represented the Indian government at the Iranian president’s swearing-in ceremony.

Minister Nitin Gadkari conveyed good wishes from Prime Minister Narendra Modi to President Pezeshkian on assuming office.

During Gadkari’s interactions in Iran, both sides positively assessed the state of bilateral relations, including cooperation on the development of Chabahar Port.

Moreover, both sides underscored that Chabahar Port would contribute to strengthening bilateral and regional trade.

It would further provide access to landlocked Afghanistan and Central Asian countries to regional and global markets.

Snap elections were held in Iran after President Ebrahim Raisi died in a chopper crash along with Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian and other officials in Iran’s remote northwest in May.

Earlier this month, reformist candidate Masoud Pezeshkian secured a win in the presidential elections in Iran, CNN reported, citing Press TV.

Out of the 30.5 million votes counted in the runoff, Pezeshkian received over 16.3 million votes, while his ultraconservative rival Saeed Jalili got more than 13.5 million votes.

According to election headquarters under the auspices of the interior ministry, the voter turnout was 49.8 per cent in Iran’s presidential elections, the report said.

Pezeshkian was elected in a second round of voting after he received the highest number of votes in the first round, ahead of Jalili. The first round witnessed the lowest turnout for a presidential election since Iran was established in 1979.