LAHORE: Former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Monday extended his congratulations to Narendra Modi upon his inauguration as the Prime Minister of India for a third term.
The commendation came through an official post on his X account, where the PML-N leader recognised Modi’s recent electoral victory.
“My warm felicitations to Modi Ji on assuming office for the third time. Your party’s success in the recent elections reflects the confidence of the people in your leadership,” Nawaz Sharif stated on X.
He also encouraged the Indian prime minister to “replace hate with hope and seize the opportunity to shape the destiny of the two billion people of South Asia.”
Nawaz Sharif was present at the ceremony when Modi first assumed the prime ministerial role in 2014. However, relations have deteriorated over the past decade, during which Modi has intensified his Hindu nationalist agenda.
In response to Modi’s 2019 revocation of the limited autonomy of Indian-held Kashmir—a move that was widely celebrated in India—Pakistan suspended bilateral trade and downgraded diplomatic relations with New Delhi.
Modi was sworn in for his third term on Sunday after his party, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), led the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) to win the general election with 293 seats, a narrower victory margin than anticipated.
This result stood in contrast to the 234 seats secured by the resurgent opposition. Unlike its previous two terms, the BJP did not achieve a landslide victory this time, defying the expectations of analysts and exit polls. This led to swift negotiations with the 15-member coalition of the NDA to secure the necessary support to form a government.
Earlier that day, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif also congratulated Narendra Modi on his re-election, marking the first official response from Pakistan nearly a week after the election results.
“Felicitations to Narendra Modi on taking oath as the prime minister of India,” he wrote on X. Modi acknowledged Shehbaz Sharif’s message with a reply on X, stating: “Thank you @cmshehbaz for your good wishes.”
