Sushma to quit her seat if Sonia becomes PM

President of India's Congress Party Sonia Gandhi (R) shakes hands with Dravida Munntra Kazhagam (DMK) party leader M. Karunanidhi (2-L) as Manmohan Singh (3-L), who looks almost certain to be finance minister in the new leftist-backed government, looks on after a meeting in New Delhi yesterday. PHOTO: AFP

Swaraj, a former parliamentary affairs minister, said the Congress party had never said it would make Sonia prime minister during the elections and the mandate for the party should not be misinterpreted.

"I do not want to take part in this national shame. I will resign from parliament if Sonia Gandhi takes over as prime minister. I cannot address her as 'Madam Prime Minister'," Swaraj told reporters.

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Sonia, leader of the Congress Party, is poised to become the first Indian premier of foreign origin after her party won the most seats in national elections and coalition allies backed her candidacy.

The Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party, which headed the former coalition government, had launched strong attacks on Gandhi during election campaigning, saying her foreign origins made her unsuitable to be prime minister.

Swaraj, in televised debates before the polls, had said Sonia was the Congress Party's biggest liability.