Hero\\\'s welcome for Modi as he arrives in Delhi

NEW DELHI, May 17 (agencies): Thousands of flag-waving supporters mobbed Indian prime minister-elect Narendra Modi as he made a triumphant entrance in New Delhi Saturday after securing a historic victory for his Hindu nationalist party.
The 63-year-old flew into Delhi's main airport in the late morning from his home state of Gujarat to bask in the glory of a landslide for the Bharatiya Janata Party and begin organising his cabinet.
The controversial politician, a former tea boy tainted by anti-Muslim riots on his watch as chief minister in Gujarat, has the strongest mandate of any Indian leader in 30 years.
A crowd of party supporters, waiting at the airport since early morning but entertained by a marching band and thumping dance music, burst through police barricades at the sight of his cavalcade.
He emerged from the door, smiling and flashing victory signs, as many strained for a glimpse and showered the vehicle in rose petals.
"Modi is our lion! He will work for the people of India, he will work for development, he will work for every Indian," shouted Om Dutt, a 39-year-old shop owner, reflecting heady expectations of what he will deliver.
As he drove to his party headquarters in the centre of the capital, thousands lined the streets dressed in t-shirts bearing his face, with police having to frequently push back well-wishers.
"I thank the BJP workers wholeheartedly," he said at a festive headquarters flanked by senior party figures such as Rajnath Singh and Ravi Shankar Prasad who are likely to take government roles.
The BJP won the first majority in parliament for 30 years on Friday after a campaign by Modi focused on delivering new jobs, development and clean government.
The triumph redrew India's political map, handing him a huge mandate for change, and heaping humiliation on the ruling Gandhi political dynasty whose Congress party has been in power for 10 years.
In national capitals across the world, leaders readjusted to the change in leadership, with the US and Europe having to quickly embrace a man who has been shunned for a decade.
Modi was boycotted by many Western countries over anti-Muslim riots in 2002 that left about 1,000 dead and a legacy of suspicion that the religious hardliner did too little to prevent the killing.
Meanwhile: US President Barack Obama Friday called up Indian prime minister-designate Narendra Modi and congratulated him on his "emphatic election victory", IANS reported quoting officials.
Obama said that the largest democracy in the world has given a "decisive mandate" and that he wished that under Modi's leadership, India will contribute at the global stage.
Another report adds: Like real estate agents the world over, Rahul Rewal asks his clients if they have children or pets, since both limit options. But there is another crucial but often unspoken question: Are they Muslim?
"I tailor the list of places that I show Muslims because many landlords, even in upper-class neighborhoods, will not rent to them," Mr. Rewal said. "Most don't even bother hiding their bigotry."
Discrimination against Muslims in India is so rampant that many barely muster outrage when telling of the withdrawn apartment offers, job rejections and turned-down loans that are part of living in India for them.
As a group, Muslims have fallen badly behind Hindus in recent decades in education, employment and economic status, with persistent discrimination by a Hindu majority a key reason why. Muslims are more likely to live in villages without schools or medical facilities and less likely to qualify for bank loans.
Now, in the wake of a landslide electoral triumph Friday by India's Bharatiya Janata Party, a Hindu nationalist party, some Muslims here said they are worried that their place in India could become even more tenuous.