The word lynching was practically unheard of before 2014 when the Bharatiya Janata Party came to power, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said on Twitter on Tuesday and went on to taunt the prime minister with a "Thank you Modiji".

Asked about the lynching jibe at a media briefing later in the day, the former Congress president said, "Sarkar ki dalali mat karo (Don't do mediation for the BJP)."

Gandhi, who appeared to lose his cool, responded after reporters asked him about the BJP's attack on his tweet.

"Before 2014, the word 'lynching' was practically unheard of. #ThankYouModiJi," Gandhi's tweet said.

The attack comes in the wake of lynchings in Amritsar and Kapurthala in Punjab where the Congress is in power.

The BJP hit back at the Congress, saying Rahul Gandhi is the son of Rajiv Gandhi who had justified the anti-Sikh riots.