Narendra Modi lands in Lahore to meet Nawaz Sharif

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi landed here on Friday evening on an unscheduled trip from Kabul to New Delhi to meet his Pakistani counterpart Nawaz Sharif, the media reported.

In a sudden development, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had said he would meet his Pakistani counterpart Nawaz Sharif in Lahore on Friday afternoon on his way back to New Delhi.

Modi, who reached Kabul early in the morning from Moscow, tweeted that he spoke to Sharif over telephone and greeted him on his birthday.

"Looking forward to meeting Sharif in Lahore today afternoon when I will drop by on my way back to Delhi."

Modi is the first Indian prime minister to visit Pakistan after Atal Bihari Vajpayee in 2004.

Modi's decision comes soon after he blamed Pakistan - although without taking the country's name - for terrorism in Afghanistan and for allegedly trying to harm India-Afghanistan ties.

Reacting to the news, Congress leader Manish Tewari said the govt's move to meet Sharif in this surprsing manner is "bizarre".

"Any summit level talks between the two countries do not happen in such a cavalier manner," he told NDTV.

The relations between India and Pakistan have witnessed some positive developments after chill for several months. The two countries recently decided to launch a comprehensive dialogue after Modi and Sharif met in Paris.