New Delhi:
Congress President Sonia Gandhi had two days ago written a letter to
Narendra Modi congratulating him on his victory in the Lok Sabha elections, Congress sources have said. Mr Modi will be sworn in as India's prime minister on Monday.
Mrs Gandhi reportedly wrote to the BJP leader on Tuesday, four days after votes for the general elections were counted. Mr Modi's party won 282 seats and, with its allies, 336.
Mrs Gandhi's party was handed a humiliating defeat and has been reduced to its lowest tally in the lower house ever at 44. (
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The BJP's M Venkaiah Naidu had criticised both Mrs Gandhi and her son and Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi on Monday for not congratulating Mr Modi.
"Though American President, British Prime Minister, scores of Prime Ministers from across the globe, including our neighbours like Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka have greeted Narendra Modi, the Congress president and vice president do not have the courtesy or the basic culture of India to greet the person who has got such a massive mandate," Mr Naidu had said.
When the Gandhis addressed the media after the results were out on Friday, May 16, the Congress chief had congratulated "the new government", but not named Mr Modi. Both Mrs Gandhi and Rahul had owned responsibility then for the Congress' debacle.