Obama bids fond farewell to Manmohan

US President Barack Obama called India's outgoing Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Saturday to convey "gratitude" for "his critical role" in deepening ties between the two allies. India is a key part of Obama's policy of pivoting US power to Asia. The US president is now courting Singh's successor, Narendra Modi, whose Bharatiya Janata Party's won a crushing election victory and who was previously shunned by Washington. But Obama reached out to Singh Saturday, expressing "his gratitude for Dr Singh's tenure as Prime Minister and his critical role in transforming and deepening the US-India strategic  partnership and our cooperation on global challenges. "The president conveyed his appreciation for Dr Singh's friendship, noting that he looked forward to further expanding the strong relationship between the United States and India with Prime Minister-Elect Narendra Modi," a White House statement said, according to a news agency.