Modi lost ‘right to leadership’: Sonia

New Delhi: Congress leader Sonia Gandhi has come down heavily on Narendra Modi for choosing to take oath as Prime Minister. She claimed that the PM-designate had lost the mandate he sought and questioned him for not taking “responsibility for failure". The remarks came even as members of the BJP-led NDA prepared to be sworn in for a record third term on Sunday. "The Prime Minister who sought the mandate solely in his name to the exclusion of both his party and its allies has suffered a political and worse, a moral defeat.

In reality, he has lost the mandate he sought and thereby lost the right to leadership as well. Yet, far from taking responsibility for failure, he intends to get himself sworn in again,” Sonia Gandhi said, while addressing the extended CWC meeting late on Saturday. Sonia Gandhi — unanimously elected the chairperson of the Congress Parliamentary Party— also said that they did not expect Modi to “change the substance and style of his governance or take cognizance of the will of the people”.

The BJP-led alliance returned to power with a reduced majority this week as the INDIA bloc secured 233 seats. The Congress secured 99 seats to emerge as the second largest party in the Lok Sabha. This is also the first time in 10 years that the party will be eligible to select a Leader of Opposition.