More US lawmakers congratulate Modi

Washington, May 17 (IANS) Two more US lawmakers, including the only Hindu-American House member, have congratulated Narendra Modi and his BJP for its sweeping election win, calling it "an extraordinary achievement" for Indian voters.

"I recently spoke with Modi by phone and congratulated him and the BJP for winning a majority vote in India's Lok Sabha," said Tulsi Gabbard, who represents Hawaii.

Calling the election "an extraordinary achievement" for Indian voters, she said she looked "forward to working with Modi and other members of the Indian government toward our mutual goals of peace, stability and economic growth in the Asia-Pacific region".

"A partnership between the world's two largest and greatest democracies is necessary for us to successfully address the many global challenges we face, including economic growth, bilateral trade, the environment, terrorism and security," Gabbard said.

Mark R. Warner, Democratic co-chair of the bipartisan US Senate India Caucus, congratulated the BJP and Modi said he looked "forward to working with the new Indian government to move the US-India relationship forward.

"Once the new government is formed, both the US and India should commit to accomplish some specific actions in the first 100 days to demonstrate that we can work together to get things done."

Warner said he believed "opportunities exist in the areas of defence trade, energy, and foreign direct investment, as well as further efforts to advance the bilateral investment treaty".