The BJP headquarters buzzed with activity on the eve of the Lok Sabha poll results as party leaders, confident of Prime Minister Narendra Modi returning for a third straight term with a “thumping majority”, prepared for a gala celebration.

A series of meetings — starting with BJP president J.P. Nadda closeted at his residence with senior ministers like home minister Amit Shah, defence minister Rajnath Singh and commerce minister Piyush Goyal, in addition to some key party general secretaries — were held throughout the day. At the meeting at Nadda’s residence, former Haryana chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar, contesting the Lok Sabha polls from Karnal, was also present.

Party general secretary Vinod Tawde termed the closed-door meeting a “review exercise” for counting day, but sources said that with the leadership confident of a “thumping majority” for the BJP-led NDA, celebration plans were also discussed. “The possible venue and date for the historic swearing-in of Modi was also discussed at the meeting,” a BJP leader said.

Party leaders said that given past precedents, Modi was most likely to drive down to the BJP headquarters and address leaders and cadres in the evening when the results are out. At the same time, some leaders indicated that there could be something different this time since a third term for Modi would be a record of sorts. If Modi returns to power, he will be only the second Prime Minister after Jawaharlal Nehru to get a third straight term.

“The possibility of a roadshow and the victory speech by Modiji taking place at a bigger venue, other than the party headquarters that has a limited capacity, cannot be ruled out,” a BJP leader said. “The final decision will be known only after the nature of the mandate becomes clear post-noon,” the leader added.

Tents were being put up at the BJP headquarters to make arrangements for party spokespersons to give media bytes. Food stalls were being erected for party workers.

The presence of Khattar at the meeting at Nadda’s residence, however, sparked speculation that he could get a top party post. The term of Nadda, whose stint as party chief had been extended, comes to an end this month. Nadda’s three-year term as BJP president had ended in January and was extended till June in view of the polls.

The other round of meetings that created a lot of buzz was that of Bihar chief minister and JDU boss Nitish Kumar arriving here to call on Modi.

Though BJP leaders termed Nitish’s meeting with the Prime Minister a “courtesy call”, there were murmurs about the BJP’s post-election plans in Bihar with the state scheduled to go to polls next year.

Sections in the BJP did not rule out the possibility of Nitish being offered a berth in the Modi 3.0 government, paving the way for the saffron party to install its own chief minister in Bihar. “A posting in Delhi suits Nitishji given his health condition. Here he can get better treatment and would be spared the trouble of rushing to Delhi frequently for check-ups,” a BJP leader said.

In the evening, BJP spokesperson and Rajya Sabha member Sudhanshu Trivedi was fielded to slam the Opposition INDIA bloc for “trying to tarnish” the image of the Election Commission and the Prime Minister. “The certainty of an inevitable defeat might have created salinity in their (Opposition’s) mind,” Trivedi said, accusing the Opposition of spreading “fear based on illusion”.