New Delhi | A delegation of 24 religious leaders under the aegis of Indian Minorities Foundation met Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday and said later that they wanted to send out the message of interfaith unity in India to the outside world.

The delegation, representing Sikh, Jain, Christian and Parsi communities, included Imam Umer Ahmed Ilyasi, chief imam of the All India Imam Organisation, and Bhikkhu Sanghasena, founder president of Mahabodhi International Meditation Centre.

"Delighted to meet a delegation of religious leaders in Parliament today. I thank them for their kind words on the development trajectory of our nation," the prime minister said in a post on X, sharing some pictures of the meeting.

Goswami Sushil of Bharatiya Sarv Dharma Sansad was also part of the delegation whose members praised Modi for his leadership after the meeting.

We wanted to give the message that humanity is the biggest religion. We live in India and we are Indians. We have to make the country stronger. We also have given the message that we all are united," Ilyasi said.

Sanghasena said it was a historic moment to have visited the new Parliament building and have a brief interaction with Prime Minister Modi and Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar.

"We all have to work together for the prosperity of the country," Sanghasena said.

Satnam Singh Sandhu, who has recently been nominated to the Rajya Sabha and played a role in organising the meeting, said they wanted to give the message to the outside world that India is united as a nation, with the government working with the mottos of "nation first" and "sabka saath, sabka vikas".