Greetings from leaders, rivals pour in as Prime Minister Modi turns 65

Greetings from India and abroad poured in alike on microblobbing site Twitter as Prime Minister Narendra Modi turned 65 on Thursday. A host of leaders across the political spectrum - from his colleagues in the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Union government to his bitter rivals - were seen taking the opportunity to wish the prime minister. While President Pranab Muherjee complimented Modi for his "hard work, dynamism and out of the box thinking", Finance Minister Arun Jaitley prayed for his good health and "success in all his endeavours".

"May the Almighty bless PM @narendramodi with good health, happiness & many more years of dedicated service to nation," tweeted President Mukherjee's official handle. In what seemed unusual, Modi's personal twitter account greeted people with multi-colour balloons.

He responded to the President's wishes with this Twitter message: "Dear Rashtrapati ji, deeply humbled by your good wishes. Thank you very much. One learns so much from your wisdom & insight @RashtrapatiBhvn." Modi, though, spent the day like any other. Besides attending to his official engagements, he visited 'Shauryanjali', an exhibition at New Delhi's Rajpath to commemorate the Golden Jubilee of India's "victory" over Pakistan in the 1965 war. Among foreign leaders who greeted the Indian prime minister on his 66 th birthday were Chinese President Xi Jinping, Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev, Australian Prime Minister Tony Abott and German Chancellor Angela Merkel. Modi made it a point to thank each through Twitter.

The office of Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi, who had received the PM's greetings on his birthday, reciprocated by tweeting: "Best wishes to Prime Minister Narendra Modiji on his birthday. @narendramodi."

Similarly, Congress leader and former Minister of State for external affairs, Shashi Tharoor, who was recently appreciated for speaking the right thing at the right time, said: "Happy Birthday @narendramodi. May you continue to serve India w/energy & commitment. Will continue to disagree w/ yr politics, but w/respect!"

Modi responded by saying: "Thank you Dr Tharoor. And, what is our democracy without constructive criticism! Debate makes us stronger."

Union Road Transport and Highways Minister tweeted: "Wishing PM @narendramodi a very Happy Birthday. May god give him all the strength to lead us all into the era of prosperity enhancement."

Among other leaders who greeted the prime minister were Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, who prayed for "his health and long life", and former Jammu & Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, who said: "Happy birthday @narendramodi ji. May God grant you a long life in the service of the nation. #HappyBdayPM."